Trauma
by Drosera Rotundifiola
Summary: In order to prevent Akatsuki from succeeding in getting Kyuubi, Sakura ends up protecting both Naruto and Tsunade. But things doesn't turn out the way she wants when she finds herself being the one needing to be saved, as a hostage of the Akatsuki.ItaSaku
1. Facing it

_**A/N:** **This is my very first fanfic, so don't be to harsh, English isn't my mother tongue. I'll try to write every chapter as long as this. Updating comes as soon as possible, but I'm literary drowned in schoolwork and examine performance.**_

**Disclaimer:** _I don't own any of the characters._

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_**Chapter 1**_

**Facing it**

It was an unusually hot day of a long, warm period, maybe the warmest in the history of my hometown, Konoha. Every river had dried up and became holes of mud and mouldy fish.

Other places were the lakes like the shrinking, sand-coloured wrinkles of an old woman. The sun was sizzling, the beams of it too brilliant, too bright.

Mirroring the ground in waves of heat, mirages appeared everywhere I focused my sight. When I threw a look at the sun, the strong light nearly blinded me, causing my green eyes to sting in pain.

My big forehead wasn't any better, if I'd some eggs, I could easily heat them up, even boil them hard-boiled on it. I also was certain of finding my red dress covered in spots of sweat.

My half-long and pink hair resembled new-showered hair, but was in the reality bathed in the same smelly and salt liquid that streamed out of the pores of my clammy skin.

"Shit!" I cursed loudly as my patience reached an end. I'd got enough of this weather and the need of showering after each time leaving the outward door-sill and as if that wasn't worse enough my beloved pair of sunglasses was sadly gone forever.

Not that I used them often, but obviously had an unwarily and seemingly innocent-looking Naruto had to break them into thousand pieces, by just sitting innocently on a chair.

Unfortunately, my glasses were placed at that chair at the wrong time, then he'd done it, as so many times before. He was just so.. so.. I didn't know precisely how to describe him, so annoying in a way that made him seem like he didn't even knew how irritating he was himself.

The way he way he looked would adore any mother who didn't new the true "him", the spiky blond hair, those huge, begging and sea-blue eyes, the wide grin when he was pleased and the enormous ramen-appetite.

Things were changed a lot in the time passing by, he'd grown, grown until he was higher than me and some of his childlike ways to behave seemed to be gone. But individuals like Naruto doesn't change easily. Most of his old personality was well-kept.

It wasn't that it wasn't a good thing, but sometimes one could forget how noisy he at times could be when he was trying to make up for things he'd done wrong after his sense, when he generally in reality hadn't.

How could I avoid to just hate it when he more or less begged on his knees while whining like a child repeating himself. 'Sakura-chan, I'm so sorry, Sakura-chan. I won't do it again. I promise!'

And he wouldn't stop and truly believe my "forgiveness", before being told it was okay and nothing was done wrong more than hundred times.

I was on my way toward the marked which found place next to the favourite ramen-restaurant, _Ichiraku Ramen Bar_, of a known, irritating, blond boy whose used to spend most of his time there, when he not was out training.

I'd some things to fix and a new pair of sunglasses to buy and wouldn't allow the weather nor Naruto to stop me.

As I passed the restaurant after several heavy steps on heated and desert-like streets and many wishes of just turning around and stay inside my cooler home, I experienced an odd thing. Today didn't appear to be a "ramen-day'", which meant every, single day, in the kyuubi-boy's eyes.

_Maybe today is one of those rare days when not even ramen-addicted boys like Naruto dare leaving the house even for eating ramen? I don't think he'll suffer. _

If I knew him right, he always stored one or several packages of ramen, at places so secret that he most truly forgot where he hid them himself, in spare at his kitchen in case of situations like this.

I had to fought a giggle as a strange picture of Naruto in pyjamas searching desperately for ramen in a messed up house showed up in my mind. It shouldn't surprise if that was the reality.

Suddenly feeling an empty, sad and lonely mood threaten to spread trough my body, I knew I would break down sooner or later. It had been that way ever since the day _he_ just left, only leaving a simple _'thank you' _after my confession of love. It was too much and I often got rapid mood shifts because of _him_, Sasuke…

Ever since the night he knocked me unconscious, leaving me on a cold bench and Naruto promised me to find him, but failed after successfully tracking him and loosing after a breathtaking battle of life and death against him, I'd been thinking of him, wondering what he was doing, even almost cried tears for him like a foolish child.

The memory of him suffered, years of not seeing him hade made their consequences. I was forgetting how he was and it felt unimaginable for a person like me whose used to spend a lot of time in loving him.

If I just could know for sure if there still was any hope, if he at least was alive, if I could get a ever so short glace to heal his suffering memory, but not as a "body-container" of Orochimaru.

Almost certainly, I would never know anything for sure at this rate. No one had succeeded in finding him after Naruto's loss against him. I felt the sweat ran rapidly down my forehead, wet and overheated. My hair was clammier as well.

Breaking my thoughts, a yell, that only belonged to one certain person at this planet, called at me, Naruto. "Sakura-chan! Sakura-chan!" He ran excited toward me, ignoring the people watching funny at him, hands sprawled in the air and a wide grin adoring his face.

He almost ran into me, almost soaked me in _his_ sweat, but luckily managed to stop in front of me just in time with one of his sheepish expressions and his right hand itching his back.

"Old granny Tsunade asks for us." Removing the hand from his back. "And here.." He reached out his left hand and showed me two tickets?

"These ones are for you. You'll get ten free portions of any optional ramen with each of them." I stared at the tickets he now waved in front of my nose and damp eyes, Naruto really wasn't _that_ annoying all in all.

"Of course I mean ten bowls of ramen eaten at the same the very same meal, or you'll have to pay for those you ate if you didn't manage to reach ten." I stared at him in shock, my mouth wide open. The words he then said was more than a little more annoying. "I think you'll have no problems in eating ten bowls!"

Inner Sakura exploded and started cursing wildly. I guessed Naruto would surely faint if he met my inner-self face to face. _'Bastard! I'm not fat, lacy non-stop-eater!'_ Inner Sakura yelled in my mind.

"Naruto! What's wrong about you, you're crazy if you think I can it ten, huge bowls of ramen! My stomach will explode before I've even managed to reach three bowls!" Naruto seemed to pale, while getting one of his common panic moods.

"S- S akura-chan, I didn't said that you _had_ to eat ten bowls. But if you feel sad for not being able to eat that much ramen, I'll gladly teach you how you can make it!" He suddenly got new ideas, turning me pissed off.

_'Naruto! I hate you and your stupid ramen! Go to hell!'_ Inner me continued to curse, while I myself was resisting the urge to punch and kick Naruto and tried to go back to Tsunade for her message. As guessed, he started to whine and beg as so many times before.

"Naruto can you just shut up. Your begging is annoying, it makes my brain ache and turn into nothing!" Once again continued Naruto pleaded, eyes looking sad, hands folded. "Listen Naruto! It's okay!" I tried to sound like I actually meant it, smiling at him as if to show him I wasn't angry anymore.

"Let's end this "ramen-thing" and instead go discussing with Tsunade-sama about whatever she wants, before she gets impatient of waiting." Naruto walked beside me, while staring at the sun with his deep-blue eyes..

"Isn't the weather nice today, so hot. I can smell it, fresh ramen served hot in a bowl!" He muttered warmly, causing me to laugh, he was just so funny in an odd way that only he could. It turned to early afternoon, thirstiness was threatening me with their appearance, the air was dry and sandy, no dampness. I stroke my pink hair and sighed dryly, feeling slightly like _breathing_ sand.

"I wish it would snow right now." My words made Naruto smile enthusiastically and dry some of the sweat on his own forehead away by using the back of his hand.

"Yeah! Then I could throw balls of snow at the others like when we were younger." We reached the Hokage's headquarter, a huge tower in red-brown bricks, after a longer walk in the sunset. The air and the sun got cooler now and the sky was coloured in any tones of red, orange, crimson, pink and purple, similar to a younger child's first painting.

"Did Tsunade ask both of us to come inside?" I asked wondering while staring at the sun. "Hmm... Granny Tsunade said something about a mission. Maybe we both should go inside…" Naruto didn't knew much himself. I watched the ground while thinking of the solution.

"That would probably be the best since none of us knows." Naruto reached out a hand opening the door to run inside the building, slamming the door in my nose like he forgot I walked right behind him. And I who thought he was attempted to act like a gentleman.

Tearing the door open, I slammed the it angrily and harder than him shoot after stepping inside, and sneered in a high, but calmer voice. "Thank you very much for smashing a door square in my face! You could at least left it open to me!" Naruto's face withered meters away from me as he took some steps away from me in the long corridor with many, many doors.

"Sakura-chan, a-are you okay?" I approached him like I was a pissed off bull whose saw blood-red. _'You won't dare acting like an idiot when I've finished you!'_ "Naruto stop acting like you are three years old!" I shouted, all that boiling of my brain wasn't any benefit of him, he let out a small scream in fear.

"Sorry!" I thought he'd grown up after spending two and a half year with that pervert Jiraya. But still he'd gone back to his foolish acting after seeing me focus chakra to me fists and punching the ground with force enough to make an earthquake.

The long corridor which led to Hokage Tsunade's office, to be more correct, cleaning-cupbroad, was quite long, but I wasn't focused at the environments at all, my attention was at a known blond-haired boy whose tried to escape my wrath by running away like a chicken.

When he reached the stairs, my anger was starting to fade and turned into lighter frustration caused by Naruto's stubborn escaping. He hurried up the stairs with me grabbing after his heel. But he quickly shook me off and continued against the door of wood with a familiar nameplate.

"Let me in!" Naruto knocked desperately at the door while jumping up, down and running around in circles.. "Old granny Tsunade, please!"

Tsunade-sama opened the door looking quite upset. "Naruto! Stopp running in circles now!"

Immediately, Naruto was dead in his moves. I locked the door behind me. "Sorry for being late, but the boy standing beside you delayed me…" My expression was innocent as if everything was caused by Naruto. "Hey! Sakura-chan was the one to scold me!"

Tsunade-sama hit her desk hard, making a loud noise. "Stop arguing, both of you!"

Both Naruto and I bowed ashamed. "Sorry, we didn't have any intention in disturbing you…"

Hokage-sama sat down at her chair and searched through stacks of papers and documents which was covering her desk. "Where did I place that document and that..." She muttered strained to herself. Every drawer was emptied in her frantic search of the paper. She was hopeless, just leaving important papers and documents fluttering everywhere. I sighed, it would take a long time to find anything in this mess.

Focusing my view at a crack in the dusty and white-painted ceiling, I wondered why she called for us without even having any mission-papers ready.

A loud noise of shattered glass caught my attention. Maybe the hurried Hokage lost her cup of coffee, most truly sake, into the floor. Making me wrinkle my nose of her hopelessness, I turned to lower my view slowly and bored toward the source of the sound, expecting to see a broken bottle.

To my shock the noise wasn't coming from any clumsy Hokage, but from right behind Tsunade-sama, and what I then saw made every limb, every muscle tense, my jaw clench, my teeth bit my bottom lip, eyes grow wide open in fear, cause now, there was standing to individuals dressed in black robes covered with red clouds in front of us. Both had purple-painted nails and rings that witnessed where they belonged, Akatsuki.

I wanted to scream, run away, flee, but my entire body felt like a stiff log. I was incapable to move any part of my body, even my breath stopped. The only sounds I could hear in the silence was my own heart beating as ever before in panic and the sound of small bells clinging, bells that hung in the enemies hats.

Naruto was already in his fighting-position ready to fight the enemies in the blink of an eye, while I just stood there doing nothing. Paralysed of fear, fear I never knew existed until now, I tried to get ready for an eventual fight.

But I knew that this was a battle I certainly not would win, I simply wasn't strong enough, though I was obligated to protect my dear ones, especially the Hokage.

I knew I was outstanding in healing wounds and cure deceases, but when it came to combat against an Akatsuki, I was chanceless. It was then I met a pair of dangerous red crimson, almost glowing, eyes with a spot looking like a pinwheel.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Tsunade-sama sounded deadly grave and struggled visibly with the handling of the situation.

Removing the covering hat to reveal his identity and Sharingan, the first awareness hit me, it had to be the Mangekyo Sharingan. I only knew one person with that kind of Sharingan.

Uchiha Itachi, the man who betrayed Konoha, the cold-blooded, careless Uchiha, the man Sasuke had swore to kill, Sasuke's own big brother. I wanted to cry, he reminded me too much of Sasuke the day he left me cold and sobbing.

The gush of memories weakened my ability to stand against the urge to scream or escape like a mouse caught in the corner, desperate trying to run away from the paws of a cat.

Next to him was another tall man standing, with something looking like a brush for cleaning covered in old, white shreds or bandages on his back, he'd blue hair and grey skin, the companion of the terrifying Uchiha, Kisame.

"What do you morons want?" Naruto growled angrily, not showing any trails of fear. He knitted his tensed fists ready for a battle to protect Tsunade-sama and me. Tsunade-sama acted swiftly and strategic, placing her right palm at her wooden desk, and with a fast and powerful jump, she slid herself over it, holding a bunk of sealed documents with her left.

I finally managed to clear my head for a short moment, utilizing the chance to run in front of the Hokage to protect her before I felt the chill creeping back into my veins.

"In any case, never look into the Uchiha with the Mangekyo Sharingan's eyes!" Both Naruto and I turned or gazes at the red, carpeted floor, afraid of being caught in the fearsome illusion, Tsukuyomi.

Without being capable to know what our enemies would do next with their hands, it would be easier for them to act and do their moves now, since we all was handicapped by our sight.

"What are your intentions?" Tsunade-sama's voice was steady and flat, she never walked in front of me nor moved in any directions. I guessed she wanted me as her protection-guard.

I felt coldness gush trough my back, my hair froze into pins. "What do you want?" Ordered Tsunade-sama again, never letting her eyes leave the carpet.

No one did anything in a moment which felt longer than an hour. Torturing my patience and death in our steps, Kisame approached us. But nothing more than two steps closer.

"Give us the documents you are holding Hokage-san, and we'll leave in peace." The voice sounded as nasty as he looked, and he wasn't beautiful. Taking a solid grip of the papers, Tsunade-sama pressed them forcefully against her chest and shouted furious at the strangers

"I', The Hokage of Konoha, will never let an Akatsuki touch any secret documents!" From the look of Kisame's legs, he appeared to be shaking of anger or enjoyment. Getting a look of the tip of his razor-sharp weapon reaching the ground, he was going to stab one of us.

"So, you want it to turn out the _hard _way?" I heard him laugh hard and evilly. _'Sadistic shark_' How much I hated him, thinking of killing as amusement, a hobby.

I had to save Tsunade-sama, our Hokage, from the fate of a S-criminals chakra-draining sword. Even tough there was a less chance for all of us to get away unharmed, maybe some of us would get away in one piece if we were lucky.

She gave Naruto a worried look, things were getting serious and the documents would become a threat against the whole country in wrong hands.

Mimicking to Tsunade-sama, the letters for run, she slowly reached for the doorknob. "And where do you think you're going?" Kisame asked chuckling, taking another step toward us.

_'Keep eyes at the carpet'_ Now I had to struggle against my own sight, curiosity threatened to allow myself a short glance at the enemies. But the risk of unfortunately meeting the Sharingan-user's view would be disastrous. Tsunade-sama stopped in her attempt, never allowing her arm to loosen it's grip of the knob.

In knowing that fast and unexpected moves would be asking for dieing, she stared at Naruto again to find a new strategy. "Run" he mouthed without making any noise.

Blue eyes gleaming of self-confident was enough to trust his plan. I moved my sight an inch to watch out for signals. The security of the Hokage came before Naruto's and mine.

I heard a deep, husky chuckle. It couldn't be anyone, but the Uchiha. Chills raged trough my nerve-system, how was it possible to sound so cold, like enjoyed toying with feelings, yet never showing anything? "Pathetic." Itachi seemed bored and careless, as expected of a murderer.

After the word was said, all appeared to be happening in high speed, every detail rushing too fast for my brain to capture it clearly as a memory. I heard Naruto shout the keyword.

"Now!" He ripped the door open and made Tsunade-sama run in front of him, as fast as her old body allowed.

"Delay them from reaching us, Sakura-chan!" The order cleared my head and only one thought was in mind, to protect both Naruto and Tsunade-sama form being finished of by Akatsuki.

Understanding that I was the only one they didn't wish to hunt down, I focused and molded huge amounts of chakra in my balled fist, not straining or letting anything disturb my concentration, not even my enemies.

Soon, there was an enormous amount of chakra charged in my hands, more than I ever before had stored. I felt the trembling the chakra made in my fingertips, just waiting for being released from my body.

"I'll never allow you to steal those documents or Naruto!" I screamed, shutting my eyes, before planting my fists into the carpeted floor.

Nothing happened. All went deadly silent as I felt a sharp pain in my arms. Opening my eyes slowly, I saw the blade of Kisame's sword lightly dug into my skin. _What the hell's going on? _My inner self cursed.

"It's not possible, you dodged me…" The voice of mine was weak and low than a whisper, my hands were shaking and crimson-coloured blood appeared around the scales of the sword blade.

"Obviously, you haven't fought an Akatsuki before." Kisame chuckled evilly while removing the blade. Warm liquid of blood streamed out of my now gaping wound in flows. I fell on my knees, panting heavily, never letting my eyes leave the carpet. All of sudden I'd felt drained of chakra, and hope, my mind was starting to dazzle and the small amount I had left refused to reach my injured hands.

Not caring for what they might do to me, I stared up at Kisame, he was even scarier when he was close, towering above me. The gills made him look like a fish and his eyes where mad and bloodthirsty, like the eyes of Garaa's Shukaku when he almost had killed me. My whole being was shaking in panic, those eyes, this person, he wasn't human, though he was.

I saw Itachi appear in the very corner of my vision as a blurry shadow, aware of the danger I now was facing. But I couldn't force my eyes to look in another direction, I was caught by his sadistically grin and stare. Why didn't they run after Tsunade-sama or Naruto? Why me?

"Do you think the same as me, Kisame-san?" An impassive, yet drawing and dangerous voice interrupted Kisame's stare. My view was heartlessly drawn towards the other Akatsuki, the one I feared most, Itachi. I wanted to stop myself, but I was too frightened. Widening my eyes in panic, I instantly was trapped within his piercing glaze.

"You're useless in fight, kunochi." That voice startled me again, making me paralysed against my will. My entire situation seemed hopeless in seconds, he'd such a control over me.

I hadn't recognized how he looked like before getting a little more adjust to the Sharingan's constant glowing. He was dangerously similar to Sasuke, but this Uchiha had longer hair, matured features and bags under the eyes. I narrowed my eyes, successfully gaining some of my willpower back, enough to at least say something.

"You both failed! You didn't succeed in getting those silly documents nor have you got Naruto!" Itachi laughed flatly. "You're wrong, kunochi. Maybe the easiest plan failed, but there's always a plan-B which is a little more tangled, but gives us more in merit." I was shocked, did this plan-B include me? I felt my emotions being pressed to an end, a border. Tears was threatening to erupt any second, though I knew it wouldn't help me the least.

"Bastards…" Muttering angered and frightened, I just wanted to rise up and escape the whole thing. "Don't be so ugly in word-use, kunochi, unless you want me to clean that filthy mouth of yours." I bit my bottom lip hard in embarrassment, this Uchiha had such a great ability in making people weak. H

e really scared me, he was so icy and nothing he said or did witnessed that he actually was a human. I refused to let either him nor Kisame control my confused mind again, though I knew it was an impossibility.

I was too weak to even touch them now. Staring blankly at the floor, I knew this could be my very last moment alive, but I rejected to give in without trying everything. I forced myself to leave the warm, comforting ground, to use my very last energy in an last attempt before my body would collapse of the loss of chakra.

"I wouldn't overdo my body if I was you." The Uchiha seemed to turn even colder, even more unpredictable. "Just flee, kunoichi." He smirked wickedly at me.

How could he seem to be so full of emotions, when there wasn't any? I continued to stare at carpet, while balancing on my feet. Stumbling solemnly away from them, I felt how injured I actually was.

A sense of stiffness and lactic-acid threatening every muscle. _No! I can't give up now!_ Sadly, my last power drained out as I struggled to take another step away. Once again I fell t my knees, frustrated attempting to crawl further toward my only goal, the open door of wood with the nameplate.

"That kunochi truly has willpower…" Kisame laughed quietly and amused, Itachi strolled calmly and gracefully after me, hazardously aware of my desperate attempt.

"I don't think it will drive her further away than this door-sill, maybe shorter." The voice was husky and manipulative. Placing himself in front of me, blocking my path, I was engaged to meet the red Sharingan I wished I never had to face again.

"Feeling discharged, empty or hopeless, young kunochi?" He smirked in an uncaring way, while lowering himself to look me straight in the eye. It smothered me to know that he read me like an open book, anticipating my next move, which seemingly didn't surprise him. I wanted the question he asked to remain unanswered.

"I'm not going to answer." I sneered like a prey doing a brave, but useless attempt to protect itself. "I see." The two words was emotionless as expected, his eyes pity and capturing. "Would you if forced you to do so?" I started shivering again at the freezing effect of his voice and eyes.

"I don't like repeating myself." Now I tried to make myself even more angered to show them I wasn't a small, crying girl. I frowned and gasped heavily as his expression went into a stiff, deadly glare.

"Neither do I." He grabbed my left foot and dragged me across the floor, back to Kisame. "No! Let go of me!" Itachi didn't bother the least.

Enforcing myself to dig my nails into the carpet, making a sickened ripping-noise and causing them to bleed and get sore. I refused to let his word affect me in any way, kicking frantically after him with my right leg.

I felt him stop and tighten his hold of my left leg, making me moan pained and press my nails deeper into the fabric of the carpet without caring for the pain throbbing in my already bleeding nails.

"Stop fighting, you know it won't make any good" I answered his conclusion by kicking even harder, making him sigh I rage. "You begged for it." I felt an extreme and torturing tightening around my left leg, ending up with the most disgusted sound of my life, my own ankle breaking diagonally, causing me to scream in utter pain and terror.

My eyes widened, my mouth broad and open, as the shock and the ripping throbbing made my consciousness fade away. _Why?_ It was my last thought in a flood of evil laughs as I drifted into eternal darkness, away from this world.

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**_A/N:_** **_Cliff-hanger. I know, they are irritating for the readers, benefiting for the writer. Keeps the intensity and makes readers long after the next chapter. Hope you liked the first chapter. Review, I'm open for new ideas and tips._ **

_**- Gaupe**_


	2. A day I wish I could forget

**_A/N: Read, enjoy and review... Hope you like this second chapter that actually is longer than the previous one._**

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**Chapter 2**

**A day I wish I could forget**

Drip… Drip… The sound of monotonously dripping water, a sign of my existence, captured by my ambulatory, sharpened senses. I frowned at the hollow noise.

Actually having a feeling of being newborn, everything of the past's events forgotten, felt refreshing like the mistakes and losses were out of world and forever erased from a sealed paper written by a pen you normally just can't wipe out.

Innocent and inexperienced, helpless and dependent, the life lying in a mother's safe hand. The choices and decisions taken for you, all you could do was fulfilling your basic needs. Would a newborn baby feel this way? Unaware of the world outside and lost in darkness.

"Drip… Drip… I yelped as my relaxing thought drifted away, like a small bubble of fantasy was ruthlessly cracked by pain. Pain which had been there all the time, just waiting for a chance to build up an outburst of strangling ache.

My eyelids were still heavy hinders for my sight. Drip... Wishing that I soon enough would be strong enough to see my surroundings. Even though they probably wasn't as idyllic and equal to my warm and loving home as the hope I furiously clung to.

Drip… Drip… I exhaled the damp air deeply, even the shortest breath hurt. The noise of falling drops of water became really outstanding and annoying compared with the lifeless silence. But all I could do as listless as I was, was sighing in frustration.

This was the way you only came to consciousness in the worst of the worst nightmares and horror films, but this was as real as the burning pain you feel after being stung of a bee a hot summer day.

My mind appeared to be blank as paper, not to forget dizzy. Regardless how hard I struggled to remember anything of how I got into this situation and why.

I found my back, numb and nerveless, leaning against something hard like stone and wet as sweat, causing my back to be drenched in salty water, a solid wall. Feeling slightly colder of my new findings than I already was, I started to shiver weakly in a necessitate of warmness.

Drip… Drip… _Where am I?_ _Why am I? _Drip… Drip… _This ought to be a silly dream.._ Drip… Drip… I would certainly wake up somewhere else, panting and sweaty, in the reality. _Wake up myself!_

Drip… Drip… I went impatient and crazy of the constant leaking water. _Keep my head cold and over the water-surface, then I'll stand this. It's just another dream. When I wake up, I'll be in my own bed._ Drip…

_Just ignore the water, it can't __do me any harm_. Drip… _Stop!_ The generally ever so harmless water tortured me by regularly remind me of the burning pain in every limp. Drip… _Please…_ Drip… Drip…

"Please, stop dripping!" Turning my most desperate thought into a purposely order meant to be cried out. The outcome was too weak to even be called a whimper… But it had it's effect, everything went dead silent as my sob threw a hardly noticeable echo through the room.

I'd got far over enough of this place and it's torment. Sitting limp in the same position made one's muscles stiffen and the mind run amuck.

In a frantic try to move, my arms appeared to touch the muggy wall behind me as well as my back. I couldn't force them into a different position nor move them away, that could only mean on thing, they were tied up.

Attempting to get lose the normal way, I found my body too weak for even leaning forward, but regardless my weakness, another firm try, consisting chakra-moulding, was realised.

My level of chakra were low and the little amount I had left, streamed to every part of my body, apart from my wrists to my fingertips.

Eyes widened in panic, were my hands amputated? Strained I searched for them, letting the limp fingers touch each other. They weren't cut of to my relief, but they were numb and my ability to feel and move them were frightening reduced.

Kisame had truly harmed them badly, I couldn't even sense the difference of warm and cold. Realising my legs were bound too when attempting to use them, it would be hopeless to move anywhere.

I was getting more aware of my body's health and feelings, defiantly not a good thing when you were in pain. Feeling the temporary amnesia drifting away, I noted the facts and the answers getting clearer.

Torturing fast, I leaved the drowsy state and began to feel the exceptional pain of salty water running into the tops of my wounded hands. My teeth gritted as a new portion of dirty water droplets hit red flesh.

Drip… Drip..._No! _That long lasted the silence… I'd got enough of being a tormented and blind mole, responding by forcing my jade-coloured eyes open up to see, just see what I faced.

I forced the eyelids to pull open. Black, light sensitive pupils widened to engulf forest-green irises to see… Absolutely nothing. Muted darkness.

They grew wide in a panicked search of a light source, but there was no brightness nor daylight to find. My worst nightmare was brought to life.

I was left, tied and weak, in a dark room with only dripping water as companionship.

Drip… Drip…" A small squeak escaped my dry throat at the same time as a fresh droplet of water left the ceiling, falling silently trough the raw air to hit the gaping wounds.

The searing pain made a great cramp-like jerk tear and spread through every bone my body owned, mercilessly making me throw my head forward in a spontaneous effect. The motion felt like ripping my body into aching pieces.

It was impossible to close the now frantic eyes. Ready to catch a new rage of pain, my expression felt empty, my teeth clenched harder, cold sweat left my forehead and back, my whole being went tense.

Tears menaced to flow over the corners of my eyes, but I refused to let them do so. I was weary of salt and tears, and things wouldn't get any better even if I begged on my knees.

No one would even bother to listen to my silent preys, my frantic nerve-collapses or me talking with myself. Drip… Drip…

If I got out of this place, I would never want to see nor hear a droplet of any kind of liquid again. Watching them once more after being free, if I ever was given my freedom back, would always send me back to my current condition, tortured.

As if things weren't awful enough, my empty stomach started growling for food. The hollow and gurgling nagging drowned out every trickling of droplets.

I got despaired, as far as I could see there was no hope left to carry on nor any end or goal to reach, merely this trancelike and aching place giving nothing. I nearly wanted to die for leaving.

Seemingly performing my mind a trick, I could swear red eyes, Sharingan, gazing at me perforating, were appearing to dominate my field of view.

They were impossible to avoid, however they occupied and distracted my focus away from my own misery. I didn't care if this sight was real nor just a trick of my bewildered brain, they put off the torture. Drip… Drip…

What kind of expression which marked the eyes were impossible to say. Maybe they were furious of my noise or relived to see me alive?

I could confess an unexpected curiosity drove me to the want of understanding the emotion sincerely, but they were in a closed position for outsiders, meaning everyone but the owner himself.

The eyes then just died out like a put out burning candle, gradually and objective, to my fright or to my delight was the Sharingan just a simple illusion. And I was once again back in the same state as ever since I woke up, alone with the pain and the dripping. Drip… Drip…

* * *

There was not a cloud to be seen at the sky, the moon shone beautifully, illuminating the more creepy and gloomy back streets. 

Naruto sat on a bar stool at Ichiraku Ramen Bar, the head sunken, deep in thought and waiting for news. It had almost been three days since Sakura disappeared.

Teuchi, the owner of the restaurant dressed in cooking-attire and a low, white cooking-hat, served Naruto a fuming portion of newly made ramen.

He smiled cheerfully, showing his dimples, as he waited for Naruto to throw himself over the bowl, as he normally did, but today he was hesitating, using plenty of time to break the chopsticks into two separate sticks.

"What's the matter, Nartuo?" Teuchi could sense the depressed mood, which indicated something was terribly wrong.

"You haven't heard it jet?" Naruto sighed heavily, showing no signs of the burning enthusiasm he used to have.

"Oh?" The expression of the ramen-owners face changed from happy to grave in seconds.

Clamping one of the chopsticks hard with a tight fist, Naruto said those words which made him feel so guilty and depressed. "They… They took Sakura-chan… Akatsuki took Sakura-chan…"

Naruto squeezed the chopstick firmer, feeing it yield the pressure and break within his grip. The already numb jaws, clenched together, the eyes went shut in an inner struggle against the tears.

"Naruto, clam down. What's happening is unbelievable and cruel and I understand how bad it may feels, but right now, no matter how strong our willing is, we can't do anything but searching and waiting for trails, most important keep our faith in getting her back up…" Naruto stared trusting up to meet Teuchi's gaze, his own clear-blue eyes moist and red of threatening tears.

"Old man, I thank you for your compassion with me, but you don't know how it feels to lose another comrade the way I perceive. You haven't experienced how it's like to grow up without any family nor friends and have everyone looking at you like you were a dangerous monster." The owner found Naruto more important than cooking and sat down beside him, looking at him with a lighter face and placed his right palm encouraging at the unhappy blond's shoulder.

"You've strong words, Naruto, words that touch ones heart, words that could've been said by a future Hokage." Naruto went speechless, the old man truly was a good friend to have at hard times.

"Thank you…" There wasn't more to say, he'd just been told by the owner of Ichiraku Ramen Bar himself believed in him as the next Hokage.

With new-stored hope, he ate the ramen in a hurry, before grinning widely at Teuchi. "I'll defiantly save Sakura, dattebayo!"

"You've grown up, jet kept your own peculiarity." The old man wiped a tear away from the corner of the eye.

"I have no time to waste! Sakura is waiting somewhere out there and I sill haven't been capable to talk with Kakashi…" Naruto smiled sadly at the Ramen owner as he paid for the Ramen, rose up from the bar stool and wandered away from the place becoming an important turning point in his life. Smiling warmly, Teuchi watched the blond speed up and blend in the night.

_Flashback__, three days earlier (Naruto's POW)_

It was late afternoon, Naruto stormed after Tsunade, never looking back, Akatsuki should neither lay a hand on the Hokage nor her important documents. Sensing a huge amount of familiar chakra gather into a enormous and dangerous weapon, he grinned at thought of Akatsuki running like crying children to their mothers after encountering Haruno Sakura, the deadly Medic-nin.

He waited for the explosion and the earthquake the chakra should've caused when it was released, but there was nothing. They got out of the building and waited for a briefly second at Sakura, but still no signs of her.

"Come Naruto, we must find a safe refuge until ANBU and Kakashi-san gets here!" Tsunade looked deadly serious and acted like she wouldn't pay a second in watching for Sakura.

"What about Sakura-chan?" He stared pleading at Tsunade. "Sakura know how to protect herself, I trained her myself!" The Hokage was confident in her words, nothing could possibly get wrong and she knew what power Sakura had in her possession.

"Trust he.." The view that then concentrated her mind, burned an unforgettable memory that would flash before her eyes continuously forever, her eyes widened in shock, this couldn't happen, the two members of Akatsuki retreated in the darkness, fast and goal-oriented, the same way as they arrived, but now one of them, the shark-like one, brought a limp body over the shoulder, a body with hair coloured like a glowing, pink headlamp, Sakura.

Naruto's eyes widened in sadness, she didn't manage to delay them like she was supposed to. Tsunade was just as horror-struck as him, why would Akatsuki kidnap Sakura? She wasn't even in possession of any special power or tailed-monster. Running back to the Hokage-tower, Naruto ignored Tsuande's warnings and ripped open the door and raced through the endless corridors, back to her office. The smell of fresh blood met his nose as he reached the door, the floor. He leaned down and investigated the carpet by a closer look, the source of the smell, it was no doubt Sakura's.

But there was more, many deep holes which only could belong Shamehada, Kisame's scale-covered sword, and beside the holes, a piece of frayed-edged paper soaked in blood. Naruto didn't dare to touch the paper before getting a closer look, it could be an explosion tag. After a shorter examination, he grabbed it gently to discover the elegant, but hurried-written words of one the kidnappers, most truly Itachi.

_Dear Hokage-san_

_You didn't obey our requirements and left a foolish kunochi in your place, cowardly done of you. Now the girl is taken as our captive until further notice. _

_You've g__ot her into big trouble. Don't expect to see her again, alive, if not our wishes are fulfilled and some additional benefits paid. _

_The last part__ kind of "refundment" for your wasting of our time and the uncooperative way you behaved in our negotiating. _

_You already know most of our requirements, all documents which has something to do or contains information of Akatuski, our members, the kyuubi and __other tailed-monsters generally. And the last and most important crave, we want the kyuubi-boy himself delivered to us. _

_The other craves comes later, it may sounds__ too much, but if you want our captive back that's the price you'll have to pay. _

_W__e recommend that you do as we request. Remember, we aren't easy-going and we don't give our captives, which we rarely have for a longer time-frame, any kind of special treatment in a "good" way. Don't try to find us nor her, it will only make things worse and maybe kill her._

_S__he may is freed if she survive and the requirement are fulfilled, but we also may kill her if you still disobey, sends ANBU or other ninjas after us in the search for her or are late in paying back. _

_To your information __there are no grants for her to be delivered back to you as we got her, healthy and in "one-piece", never forget who we are and what we do…_

_Akatsuki_

The white paper-note drifted out of Naruto's now shaking hand, floating lightly and peacefully in the mild wind of the night, coming from that broken window as a shattered and bloody feather on it's way to the ground after leaving a deadly injured and white dove.

Warm tears found their way down his whiskered and soft cheeks, before falling quickly at the floor mingling with almost stiff blood.

"Why?" It was too much for the kyuubi-boy to comprehend, watching the floor covered in his friend's blood.

"Why did they take her?" The bloody corners of the letter flickered softly in the air, the only sound breaking the deadly silence. The red blood almost blended in the red carpet, merely the dark spots of tears were noticeable.

"It should've been me…"

* * *

Did I sleep? Was I awake? It didn't make any sense anymore, my current state wouldn't be improved nor changed to the better. 

Things could only get worse than they already were, I suffered, I starved, there was too much time for thinking.

Too little time for doing other things than thinking. Sleeping wasn't anything to do, since I already had slept hour by hour and was wide awake. Being bound just worsened the whole situation and I was tortured by the constant pain in my arms and my fractured and tied leg.

The fact of myself emptied of chakra and unable to use it in my hands irritated me to no end. It was too silent, too empty.

My flow of thoughts were immediately stopped when a new sound conquered my hearing and sharpened my other senses, low and calm footsteps from somewhere outside my hell. Widening my eyes slightly, I heard the click of a lock being opened.

The sound was thrown through the room, meeting the walls before reaching me as the loudest and most disturbing sound I'd heard for the time I'd been here. Darkness turned into overwhelming light for a terrific short second as a door opened enough to let a human in.

I only managed to catch the sight of a familiar, black cloak, probably did it have red clouds on it too.

But I saw nothing more, my view was totally blinded as the door closed quickly and totally. The steps started again, but this time it sounded louder and more hollow.

Echoes sounding like distorted and irregular strokes of a clock, approached me, while sending shrills of fear and angst into the deepest and most fragile parts of my inner feelings.

Gooseflesh sprouted panicky and wild at my back, making me shake and want to crawl into the narrowest corner that existed.

There was nowhere to escape nor hide. My wounds and injuries retarded me from doing anything, but shrinking and covering my vital organs by curling my back toward my stomach and covering all I could with my neck and head. Even though it pained my numb muscles and tightened the bounds of my hands.

"Leave me alone, bastard!" My weakly attempt to sound confident and harsh, was ruined when my angry-intended voice left my mouth as a small and low begging whimper in pain.

The steps grew louder and louder, indicating the closeness of the unknown intruder, making my fear worsen by each step he or she took. Suddenly, the steps ended, everything went dead calm, no breathing other than my own heavy panting.

"Drip…Drip…" A fatigue snort broke the silence and made me want to die.

"Leave now or I'll..!" Trying again to threat the danger, I succeeded in creating a steadier voice sounding braver this time.

"Kill you…?" The little triumph I felt for my courage seconds ago was brutally blown away as the no-descriptive and calm male-voice finished my sentence.

My mouth opened in a shocked attempt to find something to say, but it merely ended in a silent gape. I was too panicked. How?

"You've lost your willpower to survive, kunochi, and seemingly don't care what the consequences of your actions may be.

Do you really want to suffer a dreadful death?" Words showing a hollow expression holding a softer tone. The choice of words and the male voice clarified how serious the circumstances were.  
Enough information digested to unmask the identity of who I faced. The empty air became filled of heavier and overextended tension. Trough the mute darkness, after overcoming the temporary blindness, I could suggest the weak glow of the remarkable contrasting and observing red eyes. Definitely no hallucination.

"Itachi…" I muttered dumbfounded in realizing what my future and chances of escaping would end like if I continued to encounter this cold bastard, endless darkness, pain, torture and in the end, a slow, horrible death.

Feeling his piercing glare at me, I remembered Tsunade-sama's important warning of staring into his eyes as the realisation dawned in my head. I hurriedly pinched my eyes shut. This seemed to entertain the Uchiha, a deep but hardly notable chuckle which sounded more like a grumble.

"The eyes should be your least worry. Bear in mind… They aren't the only weapon I have in my possession… And if I had intensions of killing you, I would finish you off in seconds, before you even notice it's too late to fight back" Those words pained my thoughts, it wasn't fare. What could possibly get worse than facing the Mangekyo Sharingan?

The verbal and psychical torture of a killer was the last affliction needed. Breaking my deep thoughts to get aware of his very first movements since he stopped, I heard the soft sound of fabric touch the ground as if it was falling little by little.

He was bending down, closer, too close, until he was merely one meter away from me, almost sitting on his knees, but still supported on his feet, like deep squatting. He didn't came any closer and no more sound caused by the fabric, making the time feel like torture.

"Go away…" I faced my chest sobbing, breaking the discomforted silence. My stomach made a displeased growl in hunger.

When I last ate was I uncertain of, so as the fact of how long I'd been concealed from the outside world and time.

"Wonder how long you'll survive starving?" Sensing his sinister and impatient glare waiting for response, I wouldn't answer the wicked question.

Almost closing my ears in ignorance and locking myself into a disconnection from reality, but was quickly interrupted.

"Let's find out how long…" A flow of shock rushed right through and to the bone. Was he serious? Would he in actuality starve me to death for amusement?

It shouldn't surprise me… When he could live with the shame of killing countless of innocent humans, if he really owned the least track of conscience. Maybe it existed somewhere deep inside his secret mind or maybe he'd defeated it himself?

"Perplexed, kunochi?" He did it again. He read my expression, and how I detested it, hated it. Why did someone who seemed to lack of emotions care for other's? The sound of an object being placed at the ground right beside me was caught of my sensitive ears.

I had to be prepared, what if he just laid a weapon, a kunai, at my side in case of an accidental idea of just "toying" a little with me before stabbing me to the room fluttered in blood?

"Be obedient" The words didn't appeared to be a new sly action, more a recommend or order. But still… Never.

I would never obey that bastard. Anyway, who would obey him? A brainless fool? An Akatsuki? Feeling the intense stare drift away from me, I sensed him rock slightly.

Maybe he was tiered of my refuses. Maybe he finally would leave? It would've been such a relief when he left.

My leg burned like hell now because of him. What he'd done was unforgivable, all the pain he'd caused me and others. I cursed a sudden cramp in the foot which made me squeak and throw my head like a dieing animal turning stiff in it's last cry of death.

Why did all my weak sides have to erupt? As the echo of my whimper died out, I felt something warm cover and sustain my left cheek from falling to my chest again in it's protective position.

I opened my eyes slowly and watchfully to see sinful, red eyes and a barely visible, but markedly coarse and strong hand with painted nails.

His hand. Itachi's hand. Why would he? The look of his face told me nothing but the same rigid mask he always wore. His glare was again intense and engrossing, but milder in their own way, not that full of burning hate. Some of it was replaced by a searching and wondering gaze.

The hand felt surprisingly soothing and vivid, totally different from the features if his face. He was too silent, a silence making even the strongest predator feel uneasy.

You would expect him to seduce and trick you to walk into an abandoned back street a dark night, and as soon as you were alone he would trap you and block every escaping route before it all ended in a bloody scream.

Struggling to lift my head out of his soft, yet dangerous grip, I tensed my neck to the utmost in order to gather enough strength to bear the weight.

But to no avail, there was no energy-source to use. Every muscle were all heavy burdens bound to my body, restraining me from using the small, essential amount I'd left, restraining me from loosen all superfluous and burned out limbs to make it have a smaller energy-consumption.

"Let go." There was no other ways to get my will but saying it out like any weak being. "You didn't said it until now?" I evaded meeting his gaze as he stated my hesitate, but the hand holding my cheek quickly forced me to stare right into the red eyes.

They were so close as he leaned closer to investigate what was happening at my inside. Staring me straight into the eye as he forced me to do the same, strengthened the contact and made his eyes more conspicuous than every gaze trapping and controlling me before.

"Hesitate, a sign of need and weakness, your need for warmness. Therefore you don't really want this hand to be removed, even if it's the body-heated hand of an enemy, that's your true weakness." I couldn't believe it myself, he actually was right, a fact I wanted to deny. But the impuissance willing and body aimed for the warmness streaming to the rest of my body through the simple touch of the still not removed hand.

I felt him holding harder, the warmth grew stronger, sending trembling shrills deep into the spinal marrow, and it felt good.

My head was pushed slightly and gentle to the side. Hardly able to understand anything happening around me as I got completely lost in the crimson eyes, my neck suddenly touched something hard and cold like metal. I broke out of the trance attentive and afraid of the contrasting coldness.

Would he kill me this soon? Angst of loosing my life made me shiver in the dangerous hand which had taken so many lives.

A feeling of touching the surface of something tepid and wet hit my right cheek, the side which not was caught in the hand. The metal was still there, making me both confused and anxious.

Rippling sounds and the taste of poor and temperate water touching my tongue as my head sunk into the liquid, unable to lift my own head away, I got cold of wetness and scared stiff of the still sharp edge, touching my throat.

In a desperate attempt to free myself and to render-harmless my most likely murderer, several twitches of my weak and bound being should've made him let go of me.

A furious look to the side revealed a turbid image of an arched, and rough surface, the sharp edge of a metal vessel filled of water.

"What the hell Itachi?!" Who did he think he was? Did he try to drown me? Struggling to get myself out, but to my strength was too low.

"Calm down or do I have to bring Kisame here to learn you a lesson that will etch on your mind?" The heartless threat silenced me in my tries, I wouldn't suffer from the Shamehada again nor would I face another Akatsuki, one was worse enough after all I'd been through.

"You're balancing blindfolded on a line you soon will fall off." I instantly couldn't help but feel a not wanted regret. But what if this may was the end after all. Who many had told their stories of surviving being a captive? A lot fewer than the number of people dieing in the same case.

"Drink the water, it may be your only source of nourishment for a long time." The words and the expression were like reading an informative article in a newspaper, only telling you what you're supposed to know and nothing of the meanings and personality hiding behind it.

I felt him lift my head out of the water, placing it at the edge of the vessel before releasing his hold of my head.

"I know you're strong enough to remove your head if you really want to…" A low, but merciless mutter left his mouth, marking the end of this meeting.

He rose up, turning his rigid gaze away, the fabric of his cloak brushing against my shoulder in the move, and strolled quietly to the door.

"You're playing an important part in this puzzle, kunochi. Every single piece, even the smallest, affects the outcome. Disobedience could lead straight to death, obedience would detain it." He stared at me one last time, the right hand gripped the doorknob.

"Why?" He still hadn't told me why exactly I of all people ended up in this mess. No answer and a blinding light.

The door locked, footsteps from outside faded gradually away. He'd left…

* * *

**A/N:** _**This took me a while to write, there's a lot of things that ought to be prioritized over fanfiction, I'll soon have an exam in math. I just "love" math! Next chapter comes as soon as possible. What do you think about this chapter? Do you have any constructive critism or tips? Just review. I don't know how many whose has experienced the joy and thrill when you get reviews, but it actually helps, it makes one really want to update even if you don't have time to do it. **_

_**Thanks to all reviewers! You've no idea of how much your positive comments helps me!**_

_**-Gaupe**_

**14.05.07**


	3. Glint of light

_**Disclaimer:** I don't own any of the characters in Naruto._

* * *

**_Chapter 3._**

**Glint of light**

The sticky substance of fawn-coloured and syrup-like glue clogged to the downside of one of several posters laying in a heap in the Naruto's grip as added new strokes with a brush.

He'd swore to do anything to receive Sakura back, _anything_. But the duty he'd got by Tsunade wasn't_ accurately_ what he'd hoped for, not even close to.

It was rather the opposite. He was obligated to do the thrilling job of pasting umpteen wanted posters of Sakura at every street corner.

Merely furnished with a bucket of glue, an old brush and, of course, mountains of posters.

As if becoming sticky and getting abnormal loads of shit attached to the clothes weren't the worst part of the job, it could never get worse enough, the dryer period appeared to be replaced by rain…

Not the welcomed, refreshing drizzle rain… But the "pouring down" sort of rain which made everyone beg for the sizzling sun to came back…

Even the best eyesight wasn't trustworthy for the sticky boy, owing to the fact that today, thick, almost impenetrable layers of fog consumed the streets of Konoha.

Papers got soaked of wetness and stuck together and to Naruto's fingers. If one poster was successfully removed after a difficult attempt, two new posters would certainly fasten where the first one let go. In other words, this truly _was_ one of the lousy jobs.

"Damn…" Naruto cursed as a huge pile of posters got anywhere but where they were meant to be..

* * *

How much longer would I last before everything, my life, went out to never be illuminated again? I would never know before the end met me face to face to become the last I ever saw.

In a way, I didn't fear the fact of death sneaking around the next corner, it actually felt reliving to finally leave this place.

The water-filled vessel was still standing next to me in the nothingness, no one had approached me since when it got there. Maybe they had forgot me?

Anyway, why should any cold member of Akatsuki care? I wasn't important, nothing was special to me in their eyes. Most truly, I was only another enforced burden they soon pushed into a dusty corner to be forgotten.

I'd managed to force some sips of water, drunk the way animals do, into my worn-out body, but it was far from enough to make any sense.

After standing too long open and exposed to the muggy air, causing my already poor drinking water to get smelly and taste more awful than I could bear, I always ended up vomiting.

Why did they serve me water to get food poisoning of if they didn't desire to kill me? I'd got enough, things wouldn't just end, there ought to be hope some where…

Too long I'd been caught here, too long I'd suffered the wrath of Akatsuki, it was time to do something to make events progress in any way. There wasn't time for wondering and shivering anymore, now it should turn on action. I needed tools, something to free me.

In search of anything to help me, my eyes fell on the diffuse outlines of the vessel, I remembered it to be made of metal as the carving memory of my throat being forced to touch the sharp edge. My mind seemed clearer again without having the disturbing shock to paralyse me. The vessel turned out to be my key to make an escaping plan see the light of day.

Calculating the distance between my hands and the metal, I quickly found my legs closer than my arms, so I had to move them first to minimize strain of my pained body.

I stretched my tied up legs as carefully as I coped with in the direction of the vessel edge, but unfortunately I underestimated the results my broken leg caused, even the smallest move of it made the place where it was fractured send an icy shock wave of suffering through every muscle.

I struggled to bit my bottom lip hard to avoid a pained whimper from escaping my mouth. What if they'd heard me? My plan couldn't be allowed to be ruined by such glimpses.

Heaving a sigh of relief, I successfully managed to block out the suffer and place my feet at each side of the sharp edge with the tie touching it. The first part was fulfilled, now came the next difficult one, I had to pull the legs back and forth until the edge cut the rope loose.

This could be my first and last chance, my body grew weaker and weaker as the time passed by. It was now or never. With new gained vitality, I began the hard task while constant looking after my injured leg only using the right leg as much as possible, even though both legs were bound tight up together.

It was almost impossible to inevitable, the left leg moved with my right one, so did the fracture, each move was pure torture and there was no methods to pass it by. Maybe this would count as a test in surviving and willingness?

I continued the drawing while digesting the hinders of myself. Observing the progress, I saw the rope splinter and get a deep crack, it shouldn't take long before I was done.

Just a little more. I heard the sound of the rope tear, a sound I'd wished to hear ever since I got here. My being froze, footsteps, light footsteps from outside.

No, why now? My arms weren't free yet, they would find me, and most truly kill me. I threw my legs frantically away, where should I go? I pulled my back against the hard material of the wall, sensing the steps draw nearer. Where to flee? Forcing my shoulder to add support, I pressed it firm to make it touch the wall, my right leg positioned to lift my bodyweight. The sound of keys tinkle, the enemy was close.

I hurriedly raised up to stand, my body balanced with the support of the wall. I limped strained in a haphazard direction, not caring the least where I would end up, as long as it wasn't toward the entrance.

The door was unlocked and wide open, it made a creaking noise. Limping appeared to take me away in too slow speed, I quickly shifted to walk on it as much as it allowed me to. It made me faster, but it also caused a lot of pain to the damage. A frightened scream menaced to get out, I'd really done it, messed up it all.

My awkward moves got more aggressive, my breath turned to heavy pants and hyperventilation. I asphyxiated another squeak, finding my backing shoulder number than ever before.

_Please… Don't find me…_ Just then, out of nowhere, I felt something or someone touching the shoulder which not rested against the wall, stopping me immediately. A stunned whimper broke free, I feared for my now poor life, hanging in a thin thread.

I heard the sound of someone clearing the throat from right behind me. Terrified, I turned my shivering and stiff head to see Sharingan and the blurry shapes of an Akatsuki cloak.

"And where did you intend to go?" The voice sounded stiff and spurious, but also exerted the way it would sound when you find talking a burden and a way of communication that only shall be used in serve situations. It held the same calmness and had a soft clearness, it was indescribable, frightening as well as interesting, almost attracting.

But how did he come here and how did he do it so precisely? I hadn't even heard the sounds of his steps when he got inside. And the most important question – what would he do to me now? The panic raged furiously in me, he surely wouldn't do anything pleasant.

Struggling to buckle myself loose, the hand touching my shoulder was removed, just to let him appear in front of me in a blurry motion.

"I underestimated your smartness. However, how far do you really think it would lead you in that condition?" His low and icy voice toyed with the echo, bouncing through every wall, to then consume the whole room.

The hand replaced itself at my shoulder to push me with minimal force, feeling my legs fail I lost my balance and fell to the adamant floor, as an illustration of my weakness. I saw his shape lean slightly ahead of me.

"You've reached your limit, kunoichi." He stared me directly in the eyes for a long time, never allowing me to turn away.

"Now your life depends on Akatsuki, another night here and there will only be the remainders of your corpse left." The way he said those words made me freeze into solid ice, he was so calm, too calm, when talking about death.

Were all murderers so unaffected? Had several murders made him immune and used to the action? It was horrible if that was the actual truth.

"I don't want you to say anything more!" My little outburst felt good and relieving, it cut straight through his formidable control.

I caught a glimpse of him smiling barely entertained, he seemingly enjoyed the way I struggled in a fight of survival and keeping my courage I never could win alone.

He moved away from my front to reappear behind me. I sensed him bend down, doubtful of what he may would do. He grabbed my arms in a jerking move.

Fearing he would harm them even more, he did the most unexpected thing of all, he cut over the ropes binding my wrists together.

I couldn't see what he used as a tool, probably a kunai. But I hadn't seen it like I usually would, this time I was the victim of my own unwanted bluntness, the result of a worn out and chakra-emptied body. He could easily kill me, if he wanted to…

"Ties aren't necessary anymore, your hands are just as unusable with as they are without." He released my hands and allowed me to pull them in front of me, the shoulder-muscles protesting against the neglected move, I could scarcely move my fingers.

Wanting badly to examine my hands, but it was too dark for watching the size of the wounds and cuts. My wrists ached where the rope had been, it'd most likely gnawed itself into my flesh making it swollen and numb.

"And you'll kill me now, am I right?" My voice shaking and thick as I turned away to cast an empty stare into the darkness. It wasn't worth it anymore, my best chances of escaping, even the less exigent ways, were impossible to go through with.

"What makes you think that way?" Itachi questioned while looking down at me. He didn't move, just stood there noticing my response.

Raising my head to meet his expression, I couldn't see any murderous purposes in the red eyes, just coldness and wonder.

"Why did you free me then?" I hated him for being so mysterious and unpredictable. A person like him was known for not hesitating a second before slaughtering. What did he have in mind if he didn't wanted the obvious, to kill me? He gave no reply letting thousands of questions lie unanswered in the air.

The atmosphere grew tense of our silence, the door to the outside-world gaping dazzling in a tempting way. It was the freedom I desperately fought to get. The way out of hell. However, as long as I had Itachi to block my path, there was no hope, he would never allow me to leave.

"You really want your hands bound behind your back?" The sarcasm dripped of every word he said, even though they weren't expressed to be so by the cold words.

"It won't take me long time to replace the rope, you know." I couldn't decide whether the phrase was serious or just to make me bewildered and afraid.

"Of course I don't _want_ to be tied up!" I hissed frustrated, my mind wasn't in mood or in fit to handle such distorted humour.

Raising myself up in a clumsy move from the abhorred wetness of the floor to be standing up with the weigh of my left foot lifted a lot over the ground by exhausted and nearly cracked up muscles.

"Then you better stay quiet." Itachi just stared, the emotions hid, so was the mouth behind the collar of the cloak, but the seriousness clear as crystal.

He'd evidently got tiered of my constant flow of questions, but even though that seemed to be the reason, I could never be certain when it came to him.

This place, this cell, it wasn't bearable anymore, my body's damages were to serve for healing naturally in a strained environment like this.

"I don't tolerate this prison anymore…" The truth had to come, letting him know, it even showed my weakness, but life in this dark cell was to tough to handle over longer time when having to live with injuries screaming for treatment.

Tiredness made a stronger appearance as the time I stood upright passed by in a too slow motion. I really had to rest, to sleep, coming back stronger and more rested than ever before later.

Now wasn't the right time for confrontation, it would only strain my body unnecessarily and only delay the time that I instead could use to heal my injuries.

I suggested Itachi's shape to turn away, looking in the direction of the wide open door. Maybe he would leave me alone?

_No, I can't be here anymore!_If he leaved, I would die. My life was actually laying within the hold of Akatsuki, or_ him_. The fact of knowing my fate, to know how long I'd left before I suffered to death, felt in way satisfying, but mostly frightening.

"D-don't leave me alone here…" The whimpering stutter wouldn't charm anyone in this room, but maybe if I got some luck after only misfortune, I could reverse the obvious fate. The part of me wanting to let fate devastate was conquered by the willing of living.

"First you want me to leave, then you want me to stay, make your decision, kunoichi." He watched me over his shoulder, like he would go at any time.

Living, would be choosing to spend more time with him, dieing meant to finally get what I wanted, that he left me for good and never came back. I turned my glance to the ground, he wanted me to decide.

"Death is a choice only taken by suicidal people and cowards…" No matter what, this way of dieing wasn't dignified. I wasn't the one to die, when I still had the choice of living. I met his gaze with a certain look, not caring what risks it could cause me. He'd given me the choice himself, then he should stand for it.

"I don't want to spend another minute in this cell!" I yelled loud marking my statement.

"I see…" Itachi modified his position to face me again, the shape of the dark cloak following his light turn, approaching me calmly with steps full of purpose to take hold of my right hand's wrist.

"Then you come with me." I felt the warmness of skin against skin, an impression I'd almost forgot how felt like, comfortingly good.

He led me closer the exit, he strolling ever so calm, totally different from my struggling in keeping the speed of my limping feet to his pace. Each jump influencing incriminating at the still worn out musculature.

"Can you at least show some respect to those who are inhibited form keeping your speed?" Panting heavily to him, as I felt the pressure of my body too high. The distance to the way out looked much longer than it probably was, confusing me completely.

For the first time in days, I could see the colours of his attire vaguely, the black cloak with red and white-outlined clouds and just barely the end of his raven-black ponytail swaying gently in the faint light hitting it. The whole situation seemed so distant, so unreal, an Akatsuki saving the pitiful, short stumps of my life.

The rectangular opening to the poor hope I longed for was finally unlocked for me. It only required a couple of steps to get out to a place that I hoped was entirely better this, maybe life would turn out in a more endurable way till I was saved or released, if they ever would…

I reached the doorsill inches from the exit, the light streaming staggering into my hypersensitive eyes, causing them to pinch shut. Itachi walking over the border between me and the outside world, to the stronger light, was the last my sight captured. In the dark, I took the last, decisive limp that required to leave the cell behind me.

Immediately I felt his hands grabbing my waist, raising me from the safe ground. "What are you doing?" I barked disconcert, my eyes remained closed until I realised he wouldn't just release me.

"Let me go!" The eyes wide open and overwhelmed by light I hadn't seen for a days, it totally dazzled me, the pupils shrinking into the size of dust. Light that brightened my existent.

Attempting to wrench loose from the powerful grasp, I could plainly see him continue to move me. I quickly understood where he wanted to place me, over his shoulder.

"I don't want to be carried around like a whining three-year old child!" Could it turn out more embarrassed? Maybe it could, but this was worse enough. I refused to let him treat me this way, even tough it was a sort of "improvement" compared to my earlier situation.

"Maybe you _are_ a whining three-year old girl?" Itachi grumbled tranquilly, placing a thought-provoker in my panicked mind. I stopped in my struggle to get some air and to assemble myself, his words were clever, I'd tried to make him let go by using the same way of thinking each time, to use force to reach my goals, but it continued to give no breakthroughs.

Then there had to be two ways, one – trying another strategy or, two – realizing there was no methods _I_ could use that would make him let go.

"I can finely walk myself." I tried to calm down my fieriness, blood fluttering through my veins to my head which was dangling against Itachi's back, drowning in the dark fabric of his cloak. The way I felt when having him so intimidating close was desperately blocked out to keep my concentration on the subject in force.

He just stared at me in a void, but importune manner, telling me nothing of what he as a matter of fact thought. Continuing the silence, he easily lifted me of his shoulder to put me back on my original standing place.

"As you wish." The low murmur was clear, yet barely audible, the gaze still catching me before calmly facing away to wander further.

Standing unbalanced at the rough floor, I got my body leaning against the white painted wall to gain some desperately needed support, limping as fast as I could, shrills of aching numbness spreading each time my foot hit the ground after a jump, after Itachi who was walking calmly several meters before me.

He didn't show any signs of being in a hurry, he was rather calm-looking, but he neither did show that he wasn't. It didn't take long time before finding it harder than expected to transport my body to the next unknown destination, it would hardly obey. I even didn't knew how long the distance was. What if it appeared to be longer than I could comprehend?

Itachi slackened his pace to look back on me, the gaze piercing with a small tint of anger. I interpreted it to be a frustrated reaction of my slow and awkward attempt to follow him by jumping on one leg.

Swallowing hard when feeling the powerful stare making me nervous and scared stiff of what he possibly could do if getting too impatient.

The actions of an unstable Uchiha were impossible to foresee, I didn't even knew where I had him, one moment he acted almost kind, at least caring a little, others he was close drowning me in a vessel filled with water…

"Do I have to carry you?" The soft, yet hard voice leaving his lips, broke my focus on the gaze to discover that I'd stopped in my steps. I closed my eyelids in a slow move to escape the intense, red eyes for a brief second, words waiting ready to leave at the tip of my tongue.

"You already know that I don't want that, so why asking?" Behaving almost _rude_ after finally getting most of what I wanted compared with the dramatic difference he'd made in my current existence, from nearly dieing of starving in a cell to something closer freedom and defiantly more comfortable when again knowing what time of day it was.

I quickly sped up to a speed I found myself capable of, continuing my limping before he would actually _realise_ his words and my tiredness grew too overwhelming for being bore by my increasingly weaker body.

If I didn't got any chances of recovering under fairly suitable circumstances soon, I most truly lost my life very soon.

Every limb ached as I fought hard to take the next step, moving me one step closer Itachi. I knew overdoing my body wasn't good at all, but when the closest and only help was_ him_, the solution was easy to take, doing it on my own for dangling helplessly over a murderer's shoulder.

I didn't dare watching what my clothes looked like, out of the way they felt to wear, they were dirty, wet and smelly.

The sight of it wouldn't be worthy to see. Maybe they were worse than feared? Investigating my wounded hands as I walked, they had deep cuts which still hadn't healed after this long time.

Normally, I would be able to heal them in minutes, but because of an unknown reason, or more exactly a reason I didn't understand, it was impossible to send charka through the chakra-channels of my hands.

I suspected Kisame's Shamehada to play a part of it, the wounds were like deep craters with raw, infected edges, which never stopped aching, a pain feeling like being constant burned without having the ability to draw them back in a reflex move.

Forcing my muscles to make another jump forward, in the direction of certain captivity, with my not heaved leg, though my body's most supreme yearning was to leave Itachi in the corridor to get the chance to gallop in full speed back to Konoha and the blond, annoying boy I never thought I would miss the way I was now.

I was about to take the next jump when I felt legs shake hard, making me stop again and gasp for air, worse than hyperventilation, a frantic pant which was supposed to fill my lungs with fresh air, but they didn't.

Instead it felt like every breath gave no help in feeling better, lungs were almost locked or gone. They wouldn't work properly as they would as usual.

The shaking caused me to loose control over my legs and slow but sure collapse to my knees before sinking my neck and falling burn-out and tiered to the cold brick floor, my cheek in the end making connection with it.

My green eyes staring feared at Itachi who still was waiting for me to follow him, but I couldn't, there wasn't energy left and neither did I really _want_ use my very last one to approach him _willingly_, it created a picture in my mind of myself as weak and obedient to an abuser's requests.

His eyes were merely watching me, never resorting to any drastic actions. His shape standing like a statue in stone, hardly doing anything but staring at me with a vivid but insignificant gaze.

"What are you staring at?" I wondered what thoughts he'd in mind when watching me in this limp position, my refusing to get on my legs again like I would do if the urge to fight further hadn't been so weak.

_Fine, now there was no ways out of here which not included him… _My thoughts were sarcastic as I found my body too exhausted to do anything. Itachi walked some calm steps back to me, the eyes still concentrated on me.

I really wanted him to get as far away from him as possible, he'd acted so unpredictable and harsh every time we were confronting each other. I couldn't get last time out of my mind, when I almost drowned in a metal vessel. What he did to me was unforgivable, but still, I'd a strange feeling, some sort of curiosity that drove me through it..

He was barely meters away, glaring holes in my chest. He merely stood there, the expression masterly hidden and investigating Sharingan reading me like a book.

It made me feel like being naked and every thought, every secret exposed to him, even though I couldn't know certainly at all what he got to know or could read in my facial expression. I wanted to jerk myself away from that gaze, afraid of letting him know too much.

"If you're so bent on expecting me to follow you, you must think twice!" I hissed angry through my teeth in an attempt to divert him from digging deeper in my mind. It didn't appeared to bother him as I intended to, instead he pieced the eyes even more into me.

It happened too fast for my eves to catch. Suddenly, he was inches and not meters away from me. The dominating eyes bored in and locked with my bewildered ones.

He probably searched for information or plans that could appear to be threats to Aktsuki, I searched as well, but for another motive, I wanted a reason of why. Why he'd such stares bored into me.

Maybe he used the energy a normal person would use on emotions and talking at the eyes, to watch every step, foresee the next move and read people?

The short distance sent ice-cold shrills of awkwardness through my body, no matter how strong my yearn of escaping was, I was caught in the corner, there wasn't any space for room or running away.

He was so close that I saw the unusually deep bags under his eyes clearer, they were more outstanding when they were close. I wondered why and how he'd got them.

Sasuke didn't have any trails of bags like that. Not even the same shadow Itachi's threw against the skin. Probably he hadn't slept a lot or well in several years.

Studying him closely to memory his distinctive stamps, I realised how contrasting everything with him was. The red eyes against the pale skin, the raven black hair.

He truly was a dismal person. So cold and calculating, what had made him turn out this way? I didn't knew much of his past other than what everyone knew; he mastered the Sharingan earlier than any Uchiha and was the youngest member in ANBU's history.

Strands of black hair which not were tied up hung scarcely in front of the red eyes, framing his face in a complete way, casual even though it could've been arranged.

It made me twitch. Not out of disgust or hatred, but because of a realization, I _wanted _more of his features and that scared me, made me try to erase it, push it away to some hidden and forgotten space of my mind to never be showed again.

The mouth which only expressed the same hard line like the rest of him. Would those lips ever be more than white papers? Had they ever showed _anything_?

Maybe I one day would be one of the very few to experience those lips smiling, at least doing other things than scaring people or saying one of the seldom words that most truly would be your last before everything flashed before your eyes…

* * *

Naruto heaved a relived sigh as he placed, more like dropped, the bucket of glue at the ground after finishing hanging the last poster at a wall.

The fingers were still spread out to prevent them from sticking together. He tiredly sat down at a kerbstone without caring for the sand and the mud which attached to the clothes. Maybe someone would give them some tips or clues now, when all those posters were to be seen everywhere.

He could feel the nagging sorrow return to his mind as he watched at a wall at the other side of the street, through the white fog he could see one of the posters were hanging there.

An old picture in black and white of Sakura, waking a memory he almost had forgot. Sakura never seemed to be pleased with any photos of herself, she meant they made her forehead look bigger and more prominent than it was, but Naruto himself found nothing wrong about them, they were rather beautiful.

He didn't understand how she could possibly see herself in that kind of way, just because people like Ino and her friends used to tease her for having a huge forehead when she was younger.

Beside the picture there was two more pictures of poor quality of Hoshigaki Kisame and Uchiha Itachi, the captors.

No one had succeed in taking new pictures of the two Akatsuki members, the one which showed Itachi was from an earlier date when he still was a law-abiding member of ANBU.

You could at least see that it was him, but the same couldn't be said of the other picture of Kisame, it was blurry and merely showed a dark shadow of the outlines of him while he was escaping the Country of Mist once in the past.

The Akatsuki were all anonymous when they didn't have to reveal identities or fight, therefore it was difficult to prove or get shots of them. They always wore conical straw hats, making it even harder.

It was offered a huge amount of money in reward to find Sakura and get Itachi caught for all the crimes, mostly the cold blooded murders of the entire Uchiha clan. Naruto didn't care for the reward, getting her back was enough.

He rose up, there wasn't any minute to waste, they all counted and they all were valuable. Every minute passing by meant one more minute for Sakura to spend with Akatsuki. It could in worst case turn on life and death.

He knew the easiest way, the most secure way to free her, but that would mean death to himself and victory to Akatsuki. They would finally get the Kyuubi, but Sakura would be free again.

Tsunade would never allow him to sacrifice himself to the organisation on a silver plate, he knew that, but if it turned out to be the _only _way, he would do it, no matter what they would say. He couldn't live without both her and Sasuke.

He leaved behind several streets as he almost ran back to the Hokage tower ready for a new duty. Seeing it draw closer, he hoped he they would get clues in time, before it ended the bad way.

The rain wasn't a problem anymore, it still rained dogs and cats, but it washed away glue and dirt, cleaning his fingers, and Sakura was everything that filled his mind.

* * *

My stomach growled hungrily as I continued my stare at Itachi. I didn't know how long I just stood there trying to break the code of his emotion, which right now seemed to be in short supply.

He hadn't showed any of them since I came, maybe some amusement and evilness, but that was all and it wasn't like it told me anything of him as person.

Soon, I would collapse of tiredness, I could already notice my eyesight getting fuzzy, a distorted picture of Itachi starting to form itself, my mind starting to ache and the time stopping to go by.

_No! I couldn't faint! _

I fought against the urge to leave consciousness, getting a badly needed break from him and Akatsuki. But I couldn't allow it, I was alone with him in a corridor, others could come out of nowhere. What would they do?

I managed to limp one step backwards, away from Itachi. It took all of my last energy and made me start loosing balance. I could see an arm reaching in my direction, a hand with black wide fabric and pale skin, also purple paint on the nails.

"Don't!" A weak whimper made it's way through my lips as I jerked away from the hand which approached me silently. I was weak, too weak, weaker than I'd ever experienced in my whole life.

Using the strength I didn't have in an attempt to take another step away, I fell to the ground to land with my back on the hard brick-floor. I winced in pain, gritted my teeth firm and did some attempts to crawl away, but was quickly stopped by myself because of stinging ache in my muscles.

"Don't!"

He didn't say anything as the hand, fingers standing out stiffly, ready to grip or strangle me, got to mere inches from my body…

* * *

**_A/N: I __know how cruel I'm now.. Adding another cliff-hanger. Anyway, it's just to wonder what happens next. Until you'll get the answer, just read and review. (Reviews helps me a lot when trying to get the inspiration for next chapter, kind of delights me to see that you like my fanfic)_** **_Update comes soon!_**

_**Gaupe**_


	4. The black umbrella

_**Chapter 4**_

**The**** Black Umbrella**

Every tiny detail seemed to glue to my memory, the air was so tense, so was I. My eyes were wide open and every emotion had disappeared from my features. Merely the paleness and the blank expression were left. It was all because of the ever approaching threat, a pale, broad palm with slender, long fingers and nails painted with deep purple nail polish. Taking all of my attention entirely, thoughts of all ways he could hurt he with his bare hands flashed before my eyes, as the unwanted arm got closer by each passing second. Its pace was too calm, cold, and blank of any signs of its intentions. It didn't show anything, just like he's own face.

Placing my own shaky palms at each side of my body, the chill of the cold tiles rushing through my bones, I pulled myself backwards, always facing him with my front. I wouldn't let my guard down even for a second, who knew what he could do? The nagging pain of exhausted muscles and the fracture of my leg didn't make things the least easy.

Mere inches remained before he would be able to touch me, I increased the speed of my movements, muscles aching painfully, my breath changing from raged to heavy panting. With my palms and fingertips I felt the cold joints between red floor-bricks passing by as I crawled as I've never crawled before. I concentrated hard on ignoring my damages and always watching his steps, that way I felt like at least having a chance.

A subdued thump hit my ears, the feeling of my back against a brick-wall. There was no way to get further backwards. I winced in defeat and of the fact of a wall being able to make my back hurt like hell. Trying to move on, I continued to move to right, but also there I was met by the wall. I moved frantic to left, the same cold stone met me, that could only mean one thing, I'd been herded like a stupid sheep and was now trapped in the corner. In other words the only way to escape was by confronting him.

I wondered what I would ever have against him in this state, if I not even could make any harm when I was healthy, how on earth would I be able to do anything now? The impossibility of the whole situation made me feel weak and helpless; there were no gaps or ways around and I had an insidious lust of ending myself. It was a frightening thought to think, I'd never done it before, just heard about those who had such thought, but never fully understood why. No one appeared in my place to protect me, I was on my own, utterly alone against a threat even Naruto failed in defeating.

Time slowed down, my vision got blurry and the sound of sizzling rain dominated my ears, pouring rain, even though there was a massive brick-wall in the between to restrain the sound from reaching me. The hand got even closer. Why did it move so slowly? Was it only me or was it actually moving that slowly? I remembered how fascinated I was of the weather when I was younger, how I could be standing for hours watching the clouds pass by. The distance between each of Itachi's fingers increased. He was so bloody close and there wasn't a bloody thing I could do about it.

My mother once found me sitting in the white-framed windowsill of my room watching a storm at night.

Listening to the desperate thumps of the racing heart in my chest, I didn't believe it were possible to get even more panicked than I already was. But I could, the pressure surely would make my head explode.

The palm were inches from my nose tip, I squeezed my eyes shut, gritted my teeth and pressed myself further into the wall, as if there was a possibility of getting into it, mingling myself with its coldness and consistence to become a part of its massiveness. . I eeped weakly in fear as I realized there were no ways to escape and as the amount of distance between us decreased. The thought of having him this close made me feel vulnerable, my defences were lowered and all that was left was the a weak shell. At the very same time I detested myself for being such a weakling and making noises even though I struggled hard not to.

It tickled in my face, a dangerous tickling. I could hear his breathing and the sound of his cloak moving with his every moment indicated that he'd stopped in his tracks.

"Don't… Don't hurt me!" My plead. got even more desperate, but they didn't have any effect, his breath continued tickling me, but I couldn't get myself to look him in the eyes, afraid of the actual reality.

I felt and saw his slender and strong fingers encircle my own right wrist, the trapped hand knitting hard to a fist in self-defence as his locked it in place.

The warmness radiating from his touch streamed through my body, it appeared to be working unintentionally comforting on me, weakening my exerted conduct .

He dragged me to my feet, forcing me to stand on shaking, weak legs. I couldn't drop to the floor again, even if I wanted to, he held my arm high above my head.

His grip of it wasn't that tight, it was rather gently considering it was _him_. It was more the pain of the muscles being drawn out that pained me to no end.

I stared with wide eyes, clearly marked of fright, at the man before me. My breath panting, chest heaving and sinking in a ragged and shaking way. The taste of blood in my mouth and every inhale tearing through my lungs.

_Why does it have to hurt this much, it's so overwhelming and sharp._

In spite of the pain it caused me to just stand erect, I couldn't make myself hate him for compelling me to fight a battle against my own impaired health.

If he hadn't pulled me up, I would've been lying at the floor forever, unable to rise myself before it turned to be too late, because of my lacking strength.

He merely held me by my right wrist, the silence having an intensifying effect at the stare which never seemed to leave me a second after the collapse.

_What does he want?_

The feeling of my legs were slowly drifting away, the muscles getting numb and limp, sensing the my bodyweight resting in his grip.

…_And why?_

I knew that I played a role in a plan, but not in what kind of way. Only one thing was certain to me, the way things were now, I would have to prepare myself for a longer stay, or in worst case, death.

The pained left leg burned through the nerves, causing me to clench my jaws harder, constantly. If just the unconsciousness could appear now, take me away from this pain and the boring eyes. It would be such a great relief to leave everything in the prevailing moment behind.

But I'd already done it once and then the outcome hadn't been what I whished it to be, I feared the possibility of being placed in _that_ dark cell again. I couldn't allow it to happen.

I felt him lowering the hand, forcing me to stand, a little, the bodyweight once again straining my body, even tough he still lifted most of it. Was he testing my current level of strength to find my breaking point?

It scared me to be ignorant, unable to know what he wanted and at the moment feeling so terrifyingly fragile.

He examined me with his gaze, reading my eyes. All of sudden the Uchiha lifted me from the ground, easy and quick, before shoving my chest over his shoulder, the earlier locked hand released.

If could, or more likely had the strength to, I would avoid his touch, everything including him, but now, closeness appeared to concern every plan I owned. There simply wasn't any other ways out, if I desired to live on, being able to return to Konoha, to ever see Naruto, ever be with my friends, again.

I felt regret for wasting amounts of energy on limping, whish not lead me anywhere, but back to the embarrassing transporting method on the shoulder of a certain Uchiha.

The blood was running to my head, making my face red, because of how I was positioned, my head merely lower than my legs. I had a want of wrenching myself loose like earlier, but my own stupidity had acted on it's own, believing I would make everything myself, even when almost dieing.

I couldn't help but feeling strange feelings overwhelm me, slowly but surely, from the moment there where contact, body against body. The feeling of warmness coming from him, streaming and spreading through my veins, soothing and warming my exhausted body.

Rays of sun, weak shades of trees, I could catch a glimpse of it all through the small windows. I almost felt the lust of sleeping, I needed it badly, but I wouldn't be unaware a second when dealing with Itachi. Cursing the rocking moves his calm steps made, it got even harder to renounce tiredness and sleep.

_No, sleeping was dangerous! _

The fabric of his cloak, soft against the skin that had been forced to rest against stone, this was so different, like silk. Kicking myself mentally for thinking such things of a piece of fabric, I gritted my teeth again. Everything he were, everything he owned were supposed to be repulsive, damned.

A low sound, almost like a chuckle, but I wasn't entirely sure of whether it was real nor an illusion caused by the blankness he always wore, was caught by ears growing used to the seemingly obligated silence.

Maybe he enjoyed it, if I wasn't making it all up in my mind, studying my inner struggle of right and wrong, he gave me one of his deep, indescribable stares with glowing the sharingan of his.

They held such an intensity, baring thoughts I hid from the outside world, like he could know them all by just watching my expression, even by just sensing my appearance.

_Stop fasten__ in the search of hidden emotions, think of escaping!_

Why did things get so difficult? I merely laid over a shoulder, it could be anyone's, but I couldn't make myself think that way. This shoulder wasn't like anyone's shoulder, and it would never be like anyone's, _ever. _Why did all my thoughts seem to run frantic, almost erupt? Why did I think of _him_ the whole time? It was hard to admit, but it appeared to be impossible to make him leave my thoughts.

He was actually torturing me by just being there, the touch only worsened it, he didn't need to be close to make me suffer.

It wasn't torture of pain, the kind of pain you feel when accidentally giving yourself a paper cut. It was the experience of new impressions bombarding me, frightening impressions of finding an enemies shoulder comforting because of some radiating heat.

I wanted to believe that it was the warmness, but I knew that it was more complicated than to only include sooth, I just didn't understand what, it was. Trying to shift position in awkwardness I found the grip of Itachi's hand holding me in place too strong, he wouldn't let me move an inch.

"Let go of me!" I was shocked of my own reactions, it wasn't that I didn't wished anyone's help to get as far away from the cell as even possible, but the way he held me, the "innocence" of it, without other intentions than transporting me to a different destination, the feelings that rushed through me, I wanted to escape them, they were all wrong, it wasn't right or healthy to act the way I did.

He answered my request by tightening his hold of my legs, the searing pain of my fractured leg getting worse at the pressure of his arm.

"Okay, okay! Please stop tormenting me!" I winced against his back, folds of black fabric covering my face, the fabric of his cloak, colliding with me at his movements.

Guessing things wouldn't or couldn't turn out in a better way, I allowed my muscles to relax a little, bending my head until it met the body heated cloak. He answered by loosening his firm hold of my legs slightly-

One of my hands laid next to his neck, on his shoulder, strands of black hair tickling it, it struck me how soft and welcomed they felt. I stared to the side to see the tip of his ponytail swaying with each step he took, curiosity hit me, how would holding some of his hair between my fingers feel like, would it be the same, better or totally different from those that already touched my skin.

No! What's wrong about me, it's wrong, entirely wrong. I'm not supposed to feel this way. My mind was screaming at me, attempting to make common sense appear. But no matter what, the struggle of forcing those feelings away, or whatever they were, was tremendous. I had to knit my eyelids together, the sight of him didn't make it any better, but i couldn't block out the warmness and the pressure of the hand which held me. Merely the thought of who it was, made me sick.

It seemed, or to me it worked out, that his precense made the nagging pain of wounds and fractures go away, at least temporarily, but it probably wasn't going to last. In some kind of strange way I was sure that the stinging would return the second any of his bodyparts left my body, but why did I believe so and why did I just think of his presence as a safe shelter to hide from the pain?

In a weird and twisted way I wanted this moment to last. How strange as it could sound, I found the presence of an enemy calming. I'd never experienced this before, but anyway I'd never been this close to someone as cold and merciless as Itachi. Maybe this was one side of me that never had gotten it's chance to appear? It could also be that my lowered state made me carefree, like I didn't see the point in continuing my fight against a situation I could do nothing about to prevent.

The first clear blue sky covered up with heavy, grey clouds coming from the other backside of the mountain of carved Hokage faces.

* * *

Flashback - their first meeting

A young girl, at the age of 7 – 8, wearing a red ribbon stood beside her mother, who was dealing with articles in a brown painted and worn general store placed at the market.

This child had a hair colour many found fairly strange, pink, and a forehead she herself was displeased with, to her it was _too_ huge.

Her jade green eyes absorbed by the sudden weather change, the sizzling sun disappearing behind enormous clouds, blue sky turning to sky covered with threatening rain clouds. She found it fascinating.

Turning her gaze back to her mother, who was supposed to still be standing in the general store, the mother was nowhere to be seen.

"Mom?" The young girl asked in a worried, childish squeak.

It was absoultly silent, merely the weak howling of the steadily increasing wind came, merely the normal flood of other voices. She got even more concerned, wondering if her mother had left her for good.

"Mom, where are you?"

Her bottom lip started trembling, the green orbs becoming wet of menacing tears.

The sky was now completely covered in huge, grey clouds, which not appeared to be so fascinating anymore; they were rather scary if you were a young girl alone in the middle of a huge market.

Raindrops started to pour down in rapid streams, moistening the hot gravel to ascend as vapour so dense it was nearly hard to breathe properly.

Soaking her pink hair with rain, it turned from normal cherry like pink to a ruby colour. The ribbon's red colour was similar the colour of her wet hair, almost the same.

She walked past several stores in search of her mother, the market was getting fewer people; they were all escaping the rain.

"Mom?"

Her red dress was dripping of wetness as well as her hair; pasting to her now cold and shivering form like sticky candy.

Looking franticly around herself, she felt the urge to cry pressing further. Where on earth had her mother went? She couldn't just leave her alone here?

She badly needed a shelter, somewhere to dry herself before catching a cold, but there wasn't any as far as she could see.

It was then she caught a sight of someone with a black umbrella up, the upper part of the person's body, the face and some of this person's neck hidden in a dark shadow. Standing at the opposite side of the market, she saw her chance. She carefully walked some steps in the strangers direction, but then stopped in her tracks. There was no one but him left, what if this person had

The young girl ran across the gravel covered ground, not caring for the pounds of rainwater she run through to reach this person. Her feet got drenched as a she took false steps and hit a pound.

Slowing down to stop at a distance of around five meters away from the individual, she just stared at the person for a while.

"Um… Sorry, but you couldn't be kind and lend me that umbrella?" She stammered, the index finger pointing weakly, with both shaking voice, and legs. Barely the constant sizzling sound of rain hitting the ground could be heard in the silence.

The stranger didn't answer, he or she just continued standing still. The girl began to feel a little uneasy, feeling a lump of regret building itself up in her throat. She wasn't far away from swallowing hard of mistrust of herself. Was it right to ask a stranger about such things?

"If-f you don't sympathize with lending me the umbrella, you shall know I quite agree with you…"

She bowed embarrassed, her head lowered from her cheeks flushing red. Almost feeling ashamed her eyes darkened and she stumbled two steps backwards. "Sorry for disturbing you…" Her weak voice and lacking will to make things the way she wanted was a result of years of being teased by the other girls. She disliked the way she looked and was, the pink hair, her voice, everything.

_I and my stupid mouth… I'm too strange to all of them…_ Her thoughts spun nervously in her young mind.

She was about to turn away from the stranger when she heard a low voice, the voice that only could belong to a boy or a teenager.

"It's okay."

The girl glared mildly surprised at the boy. It was the first word he'd ever said since she asked and the person hadn't sounded as angry as she feared, but there was still one question she couldn't get out of mind.

"What's okay?" She muttered hesitantly not sure of what was right and what was wrong to say. Was the apologize accepted? Had he invited her to join him under the umbrella?

She swore she heard him sigh, but couldn't tell if it was of annoyance or her own uncertainty.

He still seemed to remain silent, like he enjoyed or wanted to be mute.

"There's space enough for two." His voice sounded forced, confirming her suspicion of him loving silence. The voice was soft, yet it wasn't telling her anything of who or how this boy was like.

Interpreting his words as an open invitation, she unhurriedly, more like hesitatingly, shuffled her way toward him, she was wet as far as the bone.

She would bet her body contained more than 99, 9 water and felt worse than a drunken cat.

The only sounds filling the air as she reached the umbrella was the sound of falling raindrops, other people's talking and the splashing noise each time her feet touched the wet ground.

She soon got to the underside of the dry shelter, wringing her drenched hair to get rid of some water, she glazed at the stranger towering above her.

Well, he really wasn't that high, yet compared to her own high he was defiantly higher.

The face still hidden by the shadow, but it got easier to see as the eyes appropriated the darkness.

She could see the pale skin of the hand holding the umbrella and suggest the shape of black hair tied in a ponytail, as well as some strands of hair in front of his face.

Why are you so silent? She didn't know anyone who was as silent as this teenager. Maybe the parents wasn't caring or maybe it just was in his nature to remain silent?

"Who are you?" Her chirping voice dared breaking the silence, young girls like her were rarely used to stand longer periods of stillness and doing absolutely nothing.

She felt his eyes on her, analysing and searching. Probably it just was another thing of his nature.

Then she recognized a symbol printed his clothing, it had the shape of a paper fan. She'd seen that mark before, knowing it belonged to the most powerful clan in Konoha, the Uchiha clan.

Her eyes grew wide in fascination at the recognition. Maybe this teenager knew Sasuke, the boy all her friends always talked about.

"You're an Uchiha, right?" The voice filled of curiosity and the want of hearing a confirmation of her assertion.

"Hn." He mumbled in a boyish, but unnaturally deep tone, not showing any interests for the conversation or the low girl. It was as if he already knew why she asked. She was surely one of those girls who didn't trust their own reasoning or thoughts, she would always ask about what she already knew, but didn't felt sure to believe.

Was she really so predictable that he could see her interest for the younger Uchiha? She didn't knew whether "hn" meant yes or no, or a thing in between. Actually she was feeling quite disappointed with the answer, it was so sad, so simple.

Gazing vacantly at the raindrops hitting the gravel with light squirts, she wondered where her mother had gone and why the teenager standing beside her was so silent. She hoped her mom soon would come to get her, take her home to a dry and cosy house.

How long she would be detained by weather under an umbrella beside this Uchiha she didn't know, but it could be for a long while, especially since time seemed to go at a snail's pace. There wasn't anything to do other than waiting and listening to the drowsy rain which was making her sleepy.

She met the elders eyes once again, he was far more interesting than the weather, even tough he wasn't exactly the most social and cheerful person she'd met.

"How old are you?" Bent up on breaking the silence, but nervously, she threw another question in his direction. She stared at he hopefully while placing here arms on her back,

"Twelve… Almost thirteen…" The teen muttered, attention directed at the drops of water dripping from the tips of the young girl's soaked hair, eyes wearing a lazy expression.

She watched him in astonishment, well, that was the most meaningful sentence he'd expressed, the only sentence that wasn't so "wide".

"oh…" The young girl muttered, "…then you must be in the ninja-academy?" Her green orbs were focusing at the shadow so dark that she couldn't see a face. Would he remain silent or would she manage to force some information out of him? She really wanted to know who it was

There was a long silence, longer than the pervious one, did he intend to answer? Maybe she'd used up her allocation or?

"I'm in ANBU…" This time his voice held some amusement as he studied the way the girl reacted to the statement. It was clear on her features that she stiffened, that she didn't expect. She was even more pathetic than his own brother who he thought of as a spoiled crybaby.

In the same moment as she realised that she probably wouldn't get much out of him, the rain stopped and clouds seemed to disappear. The young girl heard a familiar voice calling loudly. "Sakura?" The pinkhaired could she her mother running in her direction. The Uchiha removed his umbrella, packed it and started at the young girl with his Sharingan. "I'm Uchiha Itachi and you'll probably not see me again" He gave her a last glance before running of "goodbye, Sakura"

Her mother reached her and pressed her protecting against her chest, arm surrounding her. "Who was that? You shall not talk to strangers, I've told you that so many times!" When her daughter didn't respond she stopped. "Did that person do something to you?" Sakura didn't answer this time either. She was in her own world, a part of her told her that something horrible was going to happen and the Uchiha she just met, would become a part of it in some kind of way… "Sakura, can you answer me?" Sakura shook her head furiously "What?! Where? Who?" Her mother realised that Sakura hadn't listened to her. "Who was it?" Sakura dug herself into the fabric of her mother's clothes. "I don't now and he or she didn't hurt me." Was being silent the best she could do? She didn't know.

Days passed and it wasn't until one special day that something terrible happened, it was in the news, television, radio, newspapers.. Uchiha Itachi had murdered the entire Uchiha clan, except from his little brother. That day Sakura felt like being stabbed in her heart, even tough she hardly knew him, but the fact that she'd felt that something was going to happen made it all feel worse..


	5. An Unexpected Action

_A/N: It's been a while since I last updated this fanfic, but now I'm back and ready to continue Hope I don't have you waiting all too long. I get so happy when I see that people are reading this fic and leave comments of what they think _

**_Chapter_ 5**

**An** **unexpected** **action**

I felt my inner despair threaten to burst out in a powerful flow of emotions, how had I gotten this low, how could I give in to this criminal? Why did I willingly let him carry me around like a bag of potatoes, and actually found his presence calming? It was all wrong; I wasn't supposed to feel this way. It was like falling down from a very high mountain I'd struggled to reach the top of, a top of success and honour.

If it wasn't possible to sink even lower I were probably by the mountain foot only able to watch the top I once were on. In a way I knew I would cause lesser pain to myself by obeying, but at the same time, that would only prove my weakness and cast a shame over myself as a dirty stray dog. I were supposed to be strong and among the good ones, but instead I was weak and among Akatsuki.

Closing my eyes, I thought how good this whole thing in the reality was, in a desperate attempt of forgetting all the bad stuff, not to me, but at least Naruto was safe, unless Konoha sacrificed him in order to get me back, something I doubted strongly. On the other side would my suffering here be in vain if they actually went out of their mind to get me back. I could feel the rhythmic moves of Itachi's steps as he walked down the hallway with me dangling on his back.

Cold shrills ran through my entire being, they could replace me into the dark cell. Probably it was the only thing I feared with my life, of course being with Itachi was bad, but there were certain things that was far worse, they could do almost everything to me as long as I didn't have to spend another minute in that darkness.

Through my time in the darkness with loads of time to think, I'd come to the conclusion that every minute I survived here was out of pure luck, I could day right now, in one second, if Itachi wanted so. That though itself was enough to scare the shit out of me, my life balancing on the edge of a knife threatened to be pulled of by each passing second. It had to be a miracle if I actually got through this drama of trauma alive, especially when my hostage keepers were known as the most merciless group of criminals the world had ever seen.

They were all killers and mass murders, not to forget coldblooded, I knew that I myself had killed a handful of ninjas, but they were considered as enemies and I wasn't like a robot to be controlled around. I had my own mind, and at least tried to find other solutions than death for missing nins. Staring down at my palms, I once again saw my horrible wounds, they looked even worse and I'd almost lost all ability of feeling.

The salt just made them hurt worse, but seemed at the same time to prevent a serious infection that in worst case would lead to an amputation of both them. If they just healed, if I just got my medicskills back, things would get hundreds of times more bearable.

I also took notice of a sharp pain running through every nerve each time Itachi's feet touched the ground to make a new step, simply feeling this kind of constant ache made the whole walking trip seem endless. I once again shut my eyes, fighting back tears, but also closed the ache out. The only thing left to do was thinking. I still didn't understand why I of all people had to be facing this kind of torture. Why wouldn't everything stop? Go back to normal, just like it used to be? Why did I have to bear all this pain? I felt the urge of clutching onto something, as hard as I was allowed of my current state.

I grabbed hold of the only close thing that would be allowed to be squished within by hold, a black piece of silk-like fabric with red clouds. I wanted to strangle the fit, own it, to feel like I was the one in control and not the other way. The feeling of the fabric in my hands made me pull even harder, I wanted to show them I was stronger than them and capable of tearing them into thousands pieces of shreds. It was like escaping reality to enter a fantasy where I was in charge and pain didn't exist, but that dream didn't last long, Itachi appeared to not be too pleased of having me ruining his Akatsukicloak. He made a tighter grip of my legs making the pain increase, causing me to wince at the sharp pain and release my grip.

"Bastard…" I hissed bitterly through clenched teeth loud enough for him to hear. If I just could get free I would make sure he got his ass kicked and more so. The sound of a door being opened alarmed me, making my eyes grow wider and all thoughts of revenge disappeared within seconds.

For all I knew it was the cell I'd spent my last days and nights into, there was no way I was going to survive another minute if I was forced to be there any longer. I began to protest as he moved inside the door, if they put me back in there I would never be free again, all hopes of ever seeing my friends again, and Sasuke, I would never be able to know if he ever would get back if I died now, in the darkness of a cell, damned to be laying there, rotting until only the remains of my body would be left reminding of my fate for ever until my bones turned into dust.

An urge of throwing caused by the disgusting thought made me even more secure of what I really wanted; it wasn't all the same how I ended up after this, the courage I once had returned. I couldn't end up in a dark hole, I had to try, and I had to fight for my freedom. It wouldn't return on its own, I had to fight harder, surpass myself, even if it meant to worsen injures by forcing what I'd left of charka into my wounded charka channels.

If I just gave in, I didn't even deserve my own liberty. What Akasuki had in mind when kidnapping me, I still didn't know and I wanted and answer. What did they ask for when taking me hostage? I already found it natural to require Naruto delivered, but what were the conditions? How long time did they have? I really wanted to ask, but would I dare to do? It would be like asking how long time you've left to live when having a deadly kind of cancer.

Konoha would never give away Naruto, even if it were to save me. I could only hope for ANBU to find me, but there was always a question of time, maybe I was dead when they finally found me or what if they never found me? I could only point out possibilities and figure out what might happen, but that wouldn't help me. Nothing was certain and I would never know. It was time to act, attempt to find loopholes in their plans; I'd been at the bottom too long. But on the other side acting before thinking in the worst case would worsen it all, I could speed up the time of my death.

Itachi had passed the doorframe long ago and we were now consumed by darkness. It was too late to prevent entering this room, thanks to my tendency of falling deep in thought. I hoped it wasn't that cell. Smelling and tasting the air in the room, I luckily couldn't find the smell that was imprinted to my memory forever, the smell of salt and wet stone, including damp, raw air.

The room we now entered smelled dryer that contained a touch of wood, defiantly better than my pervious prison. I heard a small click and the light went on, the room was as I smelled made of wood, wood floor, walls and roof, doors; everything was made of wood, maybe too much wood. But of course was it better than stone and it didn't remind me too much of the torture I'd been through.

Other than massive amounts of wood, were a low table in some kind of dark wood, it was filled with old, filthy containers for food, and four sitting cushions, all in an ugly pink colour, there were no windows, but a few paper sliding doors leading to other rooms. I guessed this was the living room or maybe the room were they ate. The furniture looked very old and like it had been used a lot through the times. Maybe it was some kind of base?

I saw the there were three more doors, all placed in a row, probably it was cheapest solution when building the rooms. Itachi walked to the door placed most further away and opened its paper slide. Inside there was a new room that was even smaller and looked sort of private, it appeared to be a bedroom, with only one bed. Except from the bed was a small table, a wooden chair and a ledge to place ones clothes.

Not much to boast of, but enough for someone who didn't own much or didn't have a certain home, people like Itachi and the other Akatuski. What annoyed me to no end now, was the fact that I didn't know what would happen next. He took me of his shoulder and placed, more like throwing me carelessly, on the bed. Strangely I felt more vurnable, naked and colder after being removed from his body heat.

I realised how cold my whole being was and how weak I truly was. It wasn't without a reason they replaced me. Another day and I would be as good as dead. It made sense, if I was dead, there would be nothing to use to get Naruto in their disposition. I only feared that it soon wouldn't matter what happened to me, if Konoha still refused long after passing Akatsuki's time limit. Then it would be over and I would be left alone in a dark cell to die from suffering, hunger, blood loss and other, serve things. I was normally very talkative, enough to make people went out of their minds, but now things were so entirely different.

I communicated by using body language and assuming how things might was, it wasn't a certain way, but at least it was some kind of socialisation. Itachi never spoke to me, unless he had to, he used other ways, as if every aspect of his being was frightening enough. There were huge gaps in his personality that I could not figure out, the most important pieces of him were gone, hidden, like the most important bricks of a huge puzzle that didn't make much sense without being solved. If I only knew, most questions of his whys and hows would no longer be concealed.

Finally having a softer groundsheet made me feel more at ease, after spending god know how long time in that cell with the dripping water and the cold stone. Even tough I had the worst threat in front of me, he would cause me a quick, but painful death, while the life in cell would slowly, with small amounts of constant pain, suck the life out of me. And I wouldn't be dead before the very last charka leaved my being and I would be utterly drained.

Looking at things this way made a death caused by Itachi appear more welcomed, he could kill me before I even realised the fact that I was dying. But at the same time such thoughts scared me, to choose between to worse things, like choosing between to good friends. The nights in the cell had been mostly sleepless, unless I got so drained from energy that I just lost my consciousness. I stared up slowly and carefully to be met by the same dazing eyes as I'd always met the past days.

It was hard to believe that they actually were belonging to human and I was always taken aback every time I saw them, even now after seeing them numerous of times. I simply find them hard to get used to, maybe if the eyes were the only thing I saw every second of my life, maybe then I found them normal. They didn't hold a certain emotion, only coldness, and the eyes of a merciless killer.

There was no way anyone got to see his gaze for a longer time before they were murdered, even the other Akastuki may had the same problem. I was probably one of the few who got such a unique chance to observe someone like him. The rumours of him as a cold person were defiantly true, but the ones that said he always were that way, made me clung to the hope they were wrong. No one who not was criminals had never seen or known him so long, except from Sasuke. But even he didn't know his own brother, he knew him better than anyone, still did he not reach under the surface of his personality.

I continued to stare at him, would he stand there forever? If that was the case, it was going to be pretty boring for the both of us.

"Why are you just standing there?" I couldn't take the silence anymore and I found it too stupid to have some kind of soundless game of staring with him. At the same time I wanted to show him, but also myself, that I dared breaking it. Itachi simply continued to stare at me; he couldn't have much to do in his spare time.

"Are you stupid or something?" I refused to keep the silence, but neither this time did he answer. I felt anger beginning to burn, fuelling somewhere deep inside. He ignored me. His expression didn't change at all and it was impossible to know how he reacted to my whining.

"I guess Kisame has cut of your tongue with his stupid sword thing" I felt careless, when he just ignored me he triggered a part of me which wanted constant attention, especially after not being able to communicate for days. I had an urge to talk and I hated silence and it felt good to let some of it erupt from my inside.

"Or maybe Sasuke has grown so strong that you regret calling him w…?!" I clamped my mouth shut in astonishment; I'd said too much. Itachi stepped closer until his face was mere inches from my own.

"If I were you, I would shut up immediately. Being a loudmouth never do anything good to people in your situation."

I felt like my language had disappeared, I was wordless. Never would I've expected something like that from someone like him. One moment silent and the next he was pushed over his limit.

Having his eyes this close rose my heartbeat more than twice of what I already had from being nervous. He was so fast and ruthless, if I was going to survive another day, I could not allow many of such outbursts.

The Sharingan glowed dangerously into my eyes, it was as good as impossible to close them or pulling away. My position couldn't be described as the best if I wanted to be safe from genjutsu.

But what scared me even more was how close he was, the way his warm breath tickled against my face and how some of his black strands rested against my cheeks. I felt like panicking, he was all around me and he was all that dominated my vision. At the same time, I felt the same feeling I'd experienced when he carried me, the warmness and the calmness. I ignored both feelings and was instead attempting to get him of me.

"Let me go, bastard!" He noticed my struggle and let his own bodyweight rest on me, keeping me down. It felt as tough my whole body was going to break; pain ran through my leg and my entire being. He wanted me to give up my pity attempts of escaping to face what lay before me. I would never stop looking for a loophole; I would never stop to detest everything he was.

In a way I managed to get one of my feet loose, for a while, long enough to give him a hard kick at a certain place. It must've hurt like hell, but he kept his stiff mask, the only thing I noted was the way he added all of his weight to secure me, especially at the injured foot. He seemed to have underestimated my strength and the way he made my leg throb and ache worse than ever. But at the same time I felt light-headed, I'd finally managed to do something against him. Of course it had its price; however it was worth it as long as it pulled me out of the darkest part of my apathy. Itachi read every expression that emerged on my face, but what seemed to offend him the most was when a smug smirk appeared on my face, a triumphant smirk from the pain I obviously had caused him.

"Right now your chances are very thin, kunoichi…" Itachi hissed darkly, eyes becoming slits.

"As if they've ever been better" I replied to his statement bitterly, no matter what they or I did, the outcome would be the same. As long as they held me as their hostage they wouldn't dare killing me before they had Naruto in their clutches. Why not use this chance? It was better than doing as they said; it wasn't as if I would get any kind of price by being obedient. Well, at least it would be very unlike their merciless image to honour a captive.

"I'll make you regret your way of behaving" The Uchiha talked in a deadly manner, showing an outright serious face and the Sharingan eyes were filled with anger and maybe a glint of hatred, but they mostly contained coldness. Together it made him look like the killer he was known as, he would show no mercy. Maybe it wasn't that good to make use of the given chances for revenge?

Itachi observed the way I stiffened and clenched my fists under him, my arms were still free, but last time I tried to push him away he didn't move an inch. Not to forget the risk of making the wounds that shamehada had made worse. My eyes grew wider, what would he do? I'd for so long managed to keep my head for the most part cold, but I began to loose control of myself. Suddenly it was if a stone had hit me very hard in the brain, I'd never allowed anyone this close, at least not strangers or criminals.

I'd truly messed up things this time, but I'd never been under the constant pressure of being a hostage before. Itachi placed both of his hands at the sides of my neck. Was he going to kill me? The grip tightened. Blood drained from my face to leave me white as a ghost. I had to turn my eyes away from his Sharingan, it was too much. Such coldness and that grip, would he strangle me to death?

Itachi had lost parts of his common sense that told him to keep me alive; I really was an annoying loudmouth to him. The instant he noticed that I turned away my gaze on him, he released his grip. Instead he placed his palms on my cheeks and forced me to look at him again.

"If we hadn't been depending on you to get the Kyuubi, I would've killed you" Itachi's hiss was harsh and threatening, like he didn't find his already emotionless self effective enough to keep my attention. It was obvious that he didn't like to not have things his way; he would always control things and if he for some reason couldn't then it would have its consequences.

I felt the urge of commenting him again, but found it better to not do it. I felt his huge palms pressing hard; he could break my skull into thousands of pieces if he wanted to by just adding some pressure. My life rested in his hands and he knew how to use that against me.

His mood lightened, he'd really scared me and that pleased him. The palms on my cheeks were removed and he moved away from me, rising from the bed. The door to the room opened, I dared looking away to see who was entering the room.

"Itachi-san, dinner is ready" Kisame grumbled in a lacy manner. He didn't seem to have noticed me. Probably this were the way their days where spent, and judging the way Kisame talked, he seemed to have great respect for the Uchiha. If I was lucky they may leaved me alone while they had their meal. I really needed a break from Itachi and maybe he would become less furious with me after consuming some food. Talking of food, it felt like ages since I last ate my stomach growled, but I did my best to hide it. Kisame turned his fishlike eyes on me and the sadistic smile he always had widened to reveal of his sharp teeth.

"The pink-haired is still alive, are you certain we should not follow my idea of cutting her into handy pieces. She would take up less space then. We could at least remove the leg you broke." Kisame looked quite excited with his twisted plans; it was just hard to know if he was serious or just had a really morbid sense of humour. Feeling awkward with him staring at me as an object to chop up I couldn't help but want to throw up. The pictures his words made in my mind were enough to really make someone go mad.

Itachi shot him a hard glance. I guessed he didn't own the same sense of twisted humour as Kisame or found his plans stupid. At least Kisame didn't look like he intended to say more, I wouldn't take another round with his sadistic talk. He didn't wield shamehada, it could only mean this was a place they were going to spend some time.

"I've got some boxes of ramen, so we don't need to take of the food reserves for some days" Kisame merely changed to the subject they already had been on, an easy way to evade further protests on his ideas. Itachi eyed me while considering Kisame's suggestion. I preyed with all my thoughts to just be left alone for some time.

"Fine" Itachi answered simply, still watching me closely. I felt like exulting, my preys were heard. "And I'll bring the hostage with me" I mentally slapped myself, why did I always have to be so naïve, of course they wouldn't leave me alone a minute outside the cell.

"You should be happy Itachi-san even lets you eat of our food, if I was him I would make you eat your own body-parts" Why couldn't Kisame stop make nauseating comments to everything about me? Sadistic fish, he wasn't worthy to be more.

With my face twisting in disgusted ways, Kisame closed the door behind while chuckling triumphantly at the effect he had on me as he made he went away. Itachi on the other side just stared annoyed at the door before turning his gaze on me. Thanks to the shark most of the showing-who-is-the-boss fuss was forgotten, as a minimum I'd gotten my thoughts on something else, Kisame's horrible proposals. Itachi walked away from the entrance to be standing in front of me again.

"Are you gonna stand there watching me like a supervisory camera again?" I sighed in a whiney manner. Itachi seemed to tense up once more, defiantly not pleased with me.

"Not that it's very much bad to it or something!" I desperately tried to redo what I'd just said to prevent more inconvenient encounters. When he didn't change his appearance at all, I began to sweat drop heavily as tried to find more ways to get away with it.

"I-it's actually a very good thing to have a spy cam, m-many stores have it, s-so then I must be a lucky one to have my o-own!" God that was so stupid that I once again slapped myself mentally. Where's Inner Sakura when I need her?! This wasn't good at all; I didn't want more of his attempts of killing me or the closeness.

"Please, I didn't… I mean… I didn't mean what I said!" I waved my hands stupidly trying to convince him into stopping. He walked towards me. Not in hundred years would I take another of his heartless lessons. I was panicked, no matter how cold my head was, it wouldn't help me.

He didn't look convinced to stop at all. It was rather the opposite way; he looked more convinced on doing things I desperately wanted to keep him from doing.

"Let's just discuss it instead!" I once again tried almost shouting, I had to try, and I refused to let him do whatever he had in mind.

"If you didn't mean it, why did you say it at all?" Itachi and his stupid playing with minds! I hated all of his awkward mind stuff.

"It's not like that!" I shook my head furiously, while knitting my eyes shut.

"It's like…!" The next thing I knew was that something covered my mouth, I instantly opened my eyes to find Itachi pinning both of my arms above my head while his mouth was covering mine in a rough, but silencing kiss. I didn't know how to react, it happened all too sudden. His warm and wet lips against my own, it was so unfamiliar and distant to me. Why him? I didn't find the power to struggle and I couldn't think clearly, but as sudden as it started it was ended. Itachi got back to his original position, leaving me mute and wordless in the bed. My eyes were wide open in both shock and surprise. Why him? Itachi smirked triumphantly at me.

"You finally shut up" 

Was that what it was all about? Or was there more to it? A mind that only moments ago were filled of morbid pictures was now filled with questions and all of them asking why. Why Uchiha Itachi? Why me? It was my very first kiss and now I would've to remember that my first kiss was from Itachi, willing of unwilling, it was the harsh reality. Was it fate? I couldn't form a single word with my mouth the memory of his lips haunted again and again. As if the mind was repeating the whole scenario all over again endlessly. The strange sensation of his lips that were so disturbing, soft and hard, wet and war, cold and demanding. I couldn't figure out a proper reason of why. It was a kiss, but why on earth was it delivered from Itachi the merciless and emotionless killer?

I felt like crying and laughing at the very same time, I could never think of him the same way after this. Or could I?

"Come" Itachi's single command broke through my thoughts and brought me back to reality. First I was still too startled to place the meaning of simple words at the right place. But when he moved to take me out of the bed I protested.

"I'll walk myself" Touching him once more was the last thing I would ever need to overcome my still shocked state.

I forced my body to rise up, and somehow I managed to stable myself on the legs by using the wall as support. Maybe the intense hope of never touching him again fuelled me to use power I didn't knew I had?

Careful to not even touch him by accident I walked pass him, making sure there was at least one meter between us. I almost stumbled in the small wooden table beside the bed and I officially hated the room for being so small. Having to walk down a small hallway toward the all too woodened room, I limped as fast as I could always making sure Itachi were meters in front of me. He didn't seem to be affected at all by my avoidance, other than an almost pleased look of silencing me once for all. The kiss continued to repeat itself all the time while I walked. Did he even know what it did to my poor mind?

Watching the way his cloak moved as he walked and how graceful it actually was, made me regret not walking in front of him instead. I made it to the wooden living room with the darker wooden table and sitting cushions. Kisame was already sitting beside the table, with his back against us at the cushion placed further away from the wall. Itachi placed himself at the opposite side of the table and Kisame, but at the cushion placed closer the wall. It was all in all four cushions and there were now only two left. The one beside Kisame that would make me look directly into Itachi. Or the one placed beside Itachi which would make me have to sit close him, both of them were just as worse. So I ended standing at the floor considering were to sit down, which made Kisame chuckle.

"What have you done to her now, Itachi-san? She looks very disturbed. Maybe you could teach me that technique once?"

Kisame always had to make things worse and right now I wished I could just take his place.

Itachi seemed quite amused with what he'd done to me; he just sat carefree, with the head resting in of his palms while the other held his chopsticks staring intently at me.

"Where do you consider we place her?" Kisame had grown tiered of my lacking ability of choosing between to bad things. As if to make it clear what he thought he made yawned loudly in a way that made all of his sharp teeth show up.

My legs were starting to ache from standing more than I should, but I just couldn't make myself sit down.

"Sit down, kunoichi" Itachi was once again ordering me around, but I didn't feel like obeying his orders anymore. When I didn't respond he placed both of his hand at the table, ready to rise from the floor. I still didn't manage to choose. Then he rose from the cushion and walked toward me. I used the chance to place myself at the cushion he just had been sitting on. Moving all of his stuff to the middle of the table to leave the choice to him, I made sure to look at the boxes of ramen placed in the middle. Itachi arched a brow at me, but seemed to let it go for this time.

He walked back to the table before stopping for some seconds. Merely the fact that he was stopping was pure torture to me, it made me have to wait for his decision. He really had hit me hard by kissing me. Walking a step toward me before reconsidering and then walking past Kisame, he placed himself at the seat at same side as Kisame at the opposite side from me. I eyed the ramen awkwardly unsure of what to do, could I just take one or should I wait for one of them to say I could. No matter what, I didn't dare talking. Not in the presence of Itachi. It sounded pretty stupid even to me, but I wouldn't risk more intimating things with him.

"You can take the one with fish-taste" Kisame nodded in the direction of a box with salmon. I didn't bother to even ask him why like I normally would. My mood simply wasn't the right for jokes.

I reached out one of my weak hands to take the box, but I pretty soon found out I needed both of my arms to lift it from the ground. The injuries had weakened my arms a lot and my strength was lower than the one of an average human at my age, the box of ramen wasn't even heavy.

Concentrating hard on the task of using my chopsticks, I found my hand failing to even get the right grip. But I was not the one who gave up easily; I continued my struggle determined to not stop before I found a method.

Itachi started at me, he didn't even move his gaze when he grabbed a new bunch of ramen. Kisame just stared at me with his sadistic glances. He really enjoyed watching me struggling which truly made him one of the biggest asses I knew of.

I hissed when the strain caused the wounds open, ache raging through my nerves. Damn, I'd just made it worse. A mixture of blood and a yellow substance emerged from the creaks in the craters shamehada had made. The wounds were infected and I couldn't heal myself.

It was starting to flow so I forced my arms against my clothes to stop the worst bleeding. I could just forget about using sticks now. Instead I forced my face into the box, attempting to get some food into me. I didn't care how weird it may looked or how embarrassed it were, in this situation I allowed my self to be as dirty as I had to. Even though I now looked like a stray dog. Kisame seemed even more amused of my currently lacking manners, while Itachi just stared coldly at me.

"She's like an animal" I wasn't sure if I should take it as a comment or a compliment, but the way they started at me made me feel pretty low, at the level of an animal.

"Someone's gotta feed her" Kisame truly found it entertaining, a medic of Konoha, trained under the Hokage, eating like a dog. I tried to make the food go into my mouth, but it was rather easier said than done. The ramen simply wouldn't enter my mouth, but I wouldn't let them feed me, then I rather starve.

_A/N: Maybe this was a strange place to stop end the chapter? At least it's not too much of a cliffhanger or? Will Sakura manage to eat her food or will she starve? What will she do about her injuries? Why wouldn't Kisame eat ramen with fish taste? Why did Itachi kiss Sakura? If you want to know more, wait for the next chapter. And remember, it always motivate me to continue writing when people leave reviews _

_-Gaupe_


	6. A Feeling of Regret

_A/N: Here's a new chapter of Trauma, thanks to all of you who read this story and to all the reviewers. To see that you enjoy this fanfic gives makes me really want to continue writing. _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or any of the other characters._

* * *

**Chapter** 6

**A Feeling of Regret**

"Damn…"

Naruto was sitting alone in his apartment, a wanted poster of Sakura hanging at the wall in front of him. He could hardly see the small picture of her in the dimmed light and the rain was sizzling outside; as it had been that way ever since the day Sakura was taken captive. Neither was he allowed to do something about it, out of fear from earlier experiences he wasn't allowed to leave Konoha without an escort; they were afraid he would try to save her on his own or actually extradite himself to the Akatsuki to make them let her go. The problem was just that an escort didn't exist, they had no intentions of letting him out, and no matter how many years it had been since he was chasing after Sasuke.

They didn't want him to risk his life, but he simply couldn't be satisfied when getting lousy jobs at the inside of Konoha's "safe" borders. The posters he'd been hanging up at he marked, in every street, in front of every mall, even at every lamp post, hadn't given any results, most of the information given was only made up by people willing to lie to get money. This meant many sidetracks for the ANBU who were searching everywhere and investigating the case.

Naruto felt more uneasy by each day passing, if they didn't find a way out quickly, the chances of bringing her back alive would become weaker and weaker. There was so much he wanted to do to save her; he wouldn't loose her too, not the way he lost Sasuke. And how could he ever keep his promise of getting him back if Sakura was gone? She would never be able to witness it when that day would come. It should've been him they took, but he knew that being a friend of him always was like risking life, it pained him to no end.

The time was running out and a lot of valuable time was wasted on following dead tracks, he wanted to do something, even if it meant to break rules. Almost more than four days had passed since he saw her limp body being torn away from Konoha. He stared thoughtfully out of his window into a grey and misty sky, it was almost sundown; it was almost five days since now…

He couldn't take staying here anymore…

* * *

I reached out my tongue awkwardly; I really wanted to get some of the slippery noodle into my mouth, not that a single mouthful would make be enough to equalize my hunger. At least it would be subdued to some level. Stretching the tongue as long as I could, I could only taste the fish-essence with the tip of my tongue, smell the spicy aroma, feel the foods texture, but not eat it.

My tongue wouldn't get a grip of it. Hissing from the despair of having the food so close, yet so far away, I got to think of something warm and soft against my lips, the kiss. The fact that I once again thought of it made me shake my head and knit my eyes tightly in denial. I wished the whole situation would just fade away or just be a bad dream, but when I opened my eyes, I just found my face covered in fish-sauce and two glares boring into me like an animal in the circus. One entertained glare and a lacy looking one.

I 'd tried to push the thought of that kiss away, but it always returned, and every time it would repeat itself, I would shake my head to get rid of it or try to concentrate on the food.

_You finally shut up_

Was that what the kiss was about? If so it would be last thing I expected someone like Itachi to do. What if there was something I hadn't seen yet?

This time I'd gotten enough of my stupid thoughts; it was just a kiss, nothing more and it would never be. It just seemed to get worse, and I didn't know how to get out of it, therefore I once more shook my head, but this time harder, more brutal. I would shake it of me; make my mind so confused it wouldn't remember anything. Feeling something really hot on my thighs, I dared open my eyes to find the ramen all over me, all over the table; something even seemed to have hit Itachi and Kisame.

"It's just like I said, she has the manners of an animal, maybe worse" Kisame sniggered with a toothy grin in his face. Moments later I discovered it looked like he was shaking for some kind of reason, tears almost erupting from the creaks of his fisheyes. Wait, was he crying? It couldn't be right. Then he suddenly burst into a high and ugly laughter that almost made me cover my ears, if I just could. It was undoubtedly not one of those chuckles he used to have. He was laughing in such a hard, dark, twisted way, ripping through the silence. He had a hard time suppressing it; Itachi eyed him with a tint of amusement of what I did to Kisame, but also annoyance of the sound that could rip hearts, before turning to stare at me again.

"Itachi-san, she's so fucking helpless and when she does that head-thing it's like…!" Kisame burst into laughter again. "…And when she doesn't even use her arms! Imagine how funny she would've been if I just cut them of!"

I felt it tighten in my stomach, that humour really was twisted and sadistic. How was it possible to own such sense of humour? I felt my torn and dirty clothes soaked in ramen, pieces of food everywhere. Quickly before things could take a new distorted direction I ate noodles right from the table, not once looking at Itachi's rounds of serial glares in his attempts of making Kisame shut up.

The food was starting to get cold, but it didn't matter, nor did I bother to check it for poison. I doubted they would do anything to it as long as I still was important. I filled my mouth entirely, wanting to get as much of it as I could into my mouth, just like Naurto when he ate miso-ramen, his favourite. I really understood him now if his hunger really were as powerful as the one I was experiencing right now. After eating all the noodles I licked the table clean, something I would just expect from someone like Naruto, but now it was a matter of live. If I didn't eat, I surely could expect to end up dead. Worse was the fact that I didn't knew how long this captivity would last.

* * *

It was nightfall, the rain had turned heavier and it was almost impossible to sleep. Naruto filled his pyjama with cushions and other clothes, before placing it in his bed in an attempt of making it look like he was sleeping peacefully in his bed. Grabbing his outfit from a heap on the wooden floor he threw them on while at the same time trying to pack weapons and accessories. He fastened his forehead-protector and threw himself against the outdoor, but as he was to touch the knot he stopped dead in his tracks. He'd forgotten something vitally, something really important.

At full speed he sprinted back and looked at his blue-painted, dirty kitchen in despair, he had to find it. Fuming into his system lacking kitchen he hurriedly removed everything in is path until he found it, his secret supply-closet, which contained a huge amount of miso-ramen, in finished packages.

"_Add two cups of boiled water, cover the box, wait seven minutes, then you can serve yourself a delicious meal of ramen_" Naruto said what was written on every ramen-box he'd ever bought with closed eyes, making sure he still remembered it. He then threw several boxes of ramen at the pack which now had ended up on the floor. Reaching into the closet again, he found an older box, covered in dust, blowing it away he remembered it to be a seven year old box of a ramen that didn't was for sale in the stores anymore. He smiled, the box was worthy for what he now was going to do, and proudly he threw it at the pack before collecting the boxes in a rush.

Leaving the house locked, he took a last look at his apartment, it was maybe the last time he would ever see it. He then put on a serious face as he masked his charka, for he knew it wouldn't be easy. He jumped of into the shadows, heading for the gate, the only way out.

* * *

I licked up the last piece of noodles, my eyes searching desperately for leftovers, and then I saw the other boxes placed on the table. Could I take one more? Or would I they do something against me? Kisame saw what I was searching for; he'd just managed to behave himself. But something told me he still struggled in keeping his serious mask. He couldn't hold back his grin.

"It's going to be a serious mess if we let her continue her animalistic spilling of food" Kisame chuckled eyeing Itachi. He probably was wondering who was going to clean up the chaos I'd made. I saw a touch of discomfort in his eyes. Maybe he hated to clean? He seemingly hadn't been thinking of the mess I'd made before it was too late to prevent it.

I moved my focus to Itachi without thinking about it, like I did it out of instinct. His gaze met mine and the very same uneasiness I'd felt before I had to choose where to sit, returned fully, every muscle tensed up and I felt like I'd gone pale again. Why did he kiss me? Swallowing hard I managed to rip my gaze away from him. Why did I have to feel this way?

My hands ached when I tried to remove them from my clothes; the blood had stained against the fabric which also made the wounds fasten to it. At least I'd stopped the bleeding, however now I would have to rip the open again to get them loose. If I just could get some bandages…

The two Akatsuki were watching me closely as I prepared to rip the clothing away, their eyes followed every movement I made like they were afraid I would do something. Closing my eyes firmly, I used all the strength I could collect to tear the wounds loose. My face twisted in a nasty grimace and my lips were starting to bleed from having my teeth digging into them. I hissed from the sharp pain and in agony of once again experience the pain of tearing an infected wound open.

Kisame was grinning widely at the obvious pain I was showing, proving how sadistic he was. Itachi looked a little amused of how my survival instincts turned out if the situation was bad enough.

"Do you have some bandages?" I asked in frustration, making sure to focus on Kisame, not even looking at Itachi. There was no ways but to cover my hands with my palms to stop the hot stream of blood without having to rip the cuts open again. The sadistic shark just stared at me sinisterly, visibly enjoying my pain.

"Don't you see all the blood? Or are you to lost in your sadistic thoughts?!" I wasn't capable of taking the stinging anymore and when Kisame at the same time refused to even respond I couldn't hold back. Suddenly remembering that Kisame wasn't alone in the room, I'd been too upset with his ignorance that Itachi just had disappeared from my mind. My alarms were turned on and I quickly pressed my arms and head tightly into my chest, like curling up into a ball in defence. I half expected Itachi to confront me again, that was the last thing I needed, and this time I wouldn't try to talk myself out of it. Last time I got that kiss, who would know what could happen the next time?

Kisame grinned at my sudden attack of fear; he didn't know what I'd been through, nevertheless he found it enjoyable. I wondered how he'd gotten his humour, maybe everyone in mist were that way. He found it amusing how Itachi had broken me into pieces in a very short time. After a while I dared looking up from my position to find Itachi at the very same place, he hadn't even moved.

I'd gotten more then enough of this embarrassing feast. If every day was going to be like this, it might have been better to stay in the darkness of the cell. I raised myself slowly from the table, watching both men carefully to make sure they didn't move. Then I almost ran back to the room I'd been in before the meal. Both Akatsuki members just sat on their cushions as if nothing had happened.

"I don't want to clean up" Kisame almost sniggered like he was trying to convince someone.

"I have to do something about the kunoichi before she soaks my room in blood" Itachi stated in his emotionless voice. Kisame's face was a little dissatisfied because he already knew that Itachi already had won this battle. There was no way he could convince him into doing his job, after all, I'd always been this way. Itachi ate, left the table, and Kisame was left on his own to clean. It normally didn't use be a problem, Itachi never strew things everywhere so there really wasn't much to tidy. But now, when they counted me into their daily affairs there was bunches of things to do, especially if I had to eat the same way as today during my stay.

Entering the dim room Itachi'd taken me to; I dropped on the same bed he'd laid me on in pure exhaustion, my legs were weak from misconduct and lack of chakra. The last days I'd been tearing on the charka keeping me alive, the normal was emptied long ago from the shortage of proper rest and food. I'd chosen to risk draining myself from chakra required to keep me alive instead of damaging my organs permanently.

The kiss once again returned to my mind, it wasn't supposed to be that way? I should be throwing up, but it really wasn't that disgusting. It was the thought that I didn't find it too bad, the fact that it felt a bit nice in a strange way. I couldn't say I was sickened by it, save from all the bad things he'd ever done and was doing. Like the treatment they gave me, I didn't know if it was considered as one of the worse or one of the better circumstances to live in according to their principles. At least the breaking of my leg and the dunking of my head into cold water was bad, really bad. And I was determined to never forgive him for all he did, not until he'd paid back for it all.

My leg was throbbing badly, I shouldn't have walked. And on to top it, I was in desperate need of bandages, bleeding wounds, broken foot, could it get any worse? Probably, if the luck I'd experienced recently carried on. Resting my head against the cold and hard wall behind me, I attempted to get a pause from everything. Simply forget it for a while or maybe forever. Though I would never allow myself to doze off willingly when being on guard, it may be the last thing I ever would do, but since the circumstances had turned out the way they had, a way to avoid it seemed to be far away. I'd been awake for a very long time, and now it was time to take the backlash.

Naruto was hiding himself in the shadows of a house, watching the guards taking their inspection rounds in the area of the gate. It was clearly that the protection of Konoha had increased ever since the day she was kidnapped. A weak breeze made low howling sounds. He could use it to his advantage, use it to cover up the sounds he eventually would make, thereby heighten his chances of not getting caught before he was out in freedom and on his way to get back what was stolen away.

I didn't know when or how I actually woke up; however the very first thing I could hear was the sound of a book page being shifted, it was dark save from a lamp. Out of old habits I instinctively turned against the sound to show that I was awake and knew that I was not alone. Although Itachi wouldn't be the first person I would ever choose to acknowledge that I wasn't asleep to anymore, it sadly turned to be the case. It was like screaming for more torture, begging for them to hurt me, pleading to recall unpleasant memories.

Itachi was sitting on a chair, reading a book, the cover of it hid with some kind of black fabric. It was impossible to read the title of the book, but what was even stranger was the fact that he was wearing glasses, really thick ones. I'd always believed Uchihas had perfect eyesight because of the sharingan, but he seemed to be an exception, the mangekyo sharingan seemed to have made their damages and probably still did. The sight of someone like him wearing glasses seemed very unfamiliar, not that I had anything against it, but when Itachi did it, it just seemed so not like him. He was supposed to be so perfect in every way, but on the other side I really could never know, I'd never seen Itachi in other settings than the encounters we had when he tried to take away the Kyuubi.

I didn't dare ask what he read, but at least hopefully the thoughts of his actions appear to weaken. Maybe the glasses removed some of the focus from his eyes? Made them loose some of the intensity?

His eyes met mine in a way that made it clear that he was not open for questions, but at the same time they showed that he had something undone.

I swallowed hard, it couldn't mean something good, and not when it came to him. I could only hope he didn't have intentions that weren't all too bad.

Clarifying that I was conscious might not be the best thing I'd done, even though it wasn't done consciously, it was like inviting him openly to continue the torture. You could say the break I'd been missing for so long was ended.

The red Sharingan turned to the bed under me, feeling a little uneasy I followed his sight to find the bed soaked in the blood of my arms. I flinched when seeing how much blood I'd been loosing and turned to my hands that now were covered in the same stained mass. The wound had gotten temporary bloodstains, but it wouldn't take more than a rushed movement to rip them open again. I guessed from the look in Itachi's eyes, that he wasn't pleased of having even more of their belongings polluted; maybe he was a control freak or had a fanatic sense of cleanness. He removed his glasses and laid them on the small wooden table, in the same process he bent down, before throwing a roll of bandage at me, his face as emptied of emotions as usual. He rose and from his lowered position to walk pass the bed and out of the small room. I started at the door where he'd just exited, what did he have in mind now?

Picking at the bandage I tried to figure what that was about, and what kind of book would someone like Itachi like to read, most likely the book may showed some of his interest. Why would he read a book that didn't contain anything of his taste?

I twisted it around my palm tightly, feeling the ache from the wounds every time I hit the surface. What was all this about? It wasn't like any hostage situations I'd ever experienced, or more like heard of, since this was my first and hopefully last one. Especially the part about that kiss which had affected me more than it should've. It was worse enough with the torture and mind games of pain, blood and violence, all the things expected from bad guys. But when the bad guys then uses something as intimidate as a kiss as a part the trauma it all get really messed up. Starting bandaging the other arm, I was beginning to wonder what they actually intended to do by kidnapping me. Even they should now Konoha never would release their secure hold of Naruto. Maybe they all knew that no matter what happened I would probably go home as a corpse. How much I missed them all, everyone in Konoha, but at the most I missed Naruto and Tsunade. I hoped they soon would find me and free me from this hell.

"Come, animal" Kisame was standing in the hallway, I hadn't heard him coming. He grinned wide and sadistic as usual and he seemed to hope for another of my stupid ways of eating.

I felt the urge of giving him some serious pain for being such a stupid fish, but as long as I still could keep myself in place, I wouldn't. The least I could do was refusing his orders; I didn't want it to be an easy affair getting me. As long as he still was the same stupid fish, I would dare more than I would in the presence of Itachi and his dangerous tricks. I stared at him with an angered look; it would be a waste of energy on him to leave the bed. Clenching my fists, I realised I'd got less careful about not straining my arms after finally gotten the covered up.

"Don't call me animal…" I muttered silently with the fury raging inside me, I wasn't in the mood of screaming, it didn't work anyway.

Kisame continued to stand smirking at me, a smirk that was growing wider and wider of enjoyment. He truly liked hurting others pride.

"Are you gonna come or do we have to do it the _hard_ way?" he chuckled maliciously, leaning against the doorframe in a careless way.

"And what would your "_hard"_ way be like?" I challenged him sarcastically, my eyes narrowing into slits.

"Bad enough to make you obligate, or I could make Itachi do whatever he did to you earlier…" The mention of my experience wiped every idea of how to annoy him to no end away and my eyes widened in fear. Then he added while grinning "…It really did wonders, and in such a short time!" Luckily Kisame didn't know what Itachi actually did and I'd no intentions of letting him know it. I still couldn't let myself fall for his threats, I had to be disobeying.

After being arguing for Kisame, Itachi appeared in the hallway beside Kisame, his look was still as cold as ever.

"For how long are you going to waste my time?" Itachi eyed Kisame, he couldn't be anything but dissatisfied with something. Kisame seemed to suddenly have lost almost all of his braveness; Itachi was the leader, which was for sure. What did you do to someone like Kisame to get such authority?

"The animal refuses to come" Kisame tried to explain, in a way that made his. Itachi didn't seem to buy it, looking at me with his sharingan before closing his eyes in irritation.

"What is she supposed to do against you in such a weak state?" His words hit me hard, but I knew that they were true no matter how much I wanted to repress them. I still didn't understand how it was possible to be as cold as him, never revealing emotions or showing any signs of caring. The way Itachi's eyes now opened again to stare hard with his sharingan at me, made the blood freeze in my veins.

He was everything but pleased, the air was tense. From what I'd got, Itachi intended to have made Kisame bring me to him, but by refusing to follow the orders, I'd also refused to obey Itachi. Which made the plan of avoiding him as much as I possibly could impossible; everything and everyone around me just had to be connected to him, this room, this place, Kisame… I thought I soon enough would go mad and lose my mind.

I really wanted to say something, but I was still too stunned, too lost in matters of why, something inside me had changed. I would never look at Itachi the same way again, everything I'd suggested about him from observing his behaviour and what I already knew didn't make sense when trying to puzzle the pieces of information into a reason of his actions.

"It's time to discuss the matters of your situation, kunoichi." My eyes were distant, my mind far away before Itachi actually spoke again. I'd long ago stopped to expect further information unless I got frustrated enough.

Maybe I finally would get the answers I'd wanted to know ever since I got here. _Maybe I would get to know how long I'd left to live._ I really wanted to know all but the date of my death. I was after all a hostage, merely used to get what the enemies wanted, and if they didn't they would end me. It wasn't like it couldn't be very same end even though they might do as Akatsuki demanded; they might as well kill me once they had Naruto in their clutches.

"You better come" Kisame grinned widely in a very sadistic way; he enjoyed my pain and struggles, considering it as entertainment. This time I didn't complain, I had no choices that were relevant at the moment unless I really, really urged for getting trouble with Itachi. Rising from the bed slightly defeated, I limped my way out as the others made their moves back to the room with all the wooden stuff. I went past the door I suggested belonged to Kisame and another one I still had no ideas of what was the purpose of. It may be a bath, a restroom, a bedroom, maybe even another cell. Surprisingly the room was cleaned up, which meant Itachi once again got his will.

Glaring at the same table again with a mocked expression, I realised how much I really hated to choose between where to sit. Itachi placed himself at the same place as before, the seat closest the hallway, which lead to his room, and the wall. He eyed me in irritation before deciding a place for me to sit with his mere gaze, the cushion beside himself; it'd been empty the last time.

"Hey!" Kisame wasn't too pleased of not using what appeared to be _his_ seat, but at the same time it was quite strange that it was okay to have the cushion empty yesterday, during the embarrasing meal. I understood he'd just chosen the place he'd chosen, in order to make it more difficult to choose where I would sit.

I debated with myself whether I would do as he ordered or choosing a new seat myself. Itachi's eyes narrowed, he saw straight through me, disobedience defiantly wouldn't do anything good this time. I looked at him hesitantly, it was worse enough to sit at the opposite side of him, but next to him. It would be too close after the incidents I'd been through, especially those including him. Inhaling deeply I finally sat down, getting as far away from him as the cushion allowed. The Uchiha seemingly managed to calm down; at least I would be safe, for now.

* * *

Naruto ran into the next close shadow. If anyone had been watching, they would've seen a dark silhouette passing by very fast, so fast people would doubt in their eyesight if they actually took notice of it. He leaned against the wall of a house, waiting for the next opportunity to sneak up closer the gate. He couldn't fail, he couldn't loose her again, and he would save her. Thinking of his special ramen box, that he would use it for this purpose, it ought to work. He would eat it for her, believe it would give him the strength he needed and most important of all; believe in himself.

He leaved the darkness of the shadow to run to the very last building before he would escape from his own friends and those he thought of as his family. He directed his eyes on the Hokage-mountain, vaguely getting the shape of the familiar faces. It may be the last time he saw it. He stared at the Hokage-tower and all the familiar houses and shops.

The darkness made it hard to see anything, but what he got would be worth it if it was the last time. He felt sorry for all those who would worry for him, especially Kakashi and the others from the ninja-academy. Closing all the memories deep inside him, he closed his eyes to the world. He would go soon, opening his eyes again, he wasn't the same Naruto, and he'd only one goal and all foolishness as vanished from his features. He'd promised to stay inside the borders of Konoha, but he was going to be a betrayer like Sasuke. He wouldn't fail again.

Leaving the shadows for the very last time, he ran against the gate at full speed. The guards surrounded him, but he didn't stop, he ran into those in his path. He felt the blade of a kunai sink into the flesh beside his shoulder and the warmness of blood was starting to flow. Directing a kunai himself toward the ninjas in his path he stabbed someone, the ninjas stopped fighting to help the one he'd harmed. It gave him the chance he'd needed and he ran away from his security. He could hear the pained screams of the ninja he'd injured pierce through his mind, but he couldn't stop. And as he left them he heard them shout. "We're going to loose him! There's too much blood! Bring the medic!" He reached the forest, he was outside, but he felt empty. What had he done? His eyes were wide open, he couldn't close them. The shock of his actions was too overwhelming. He had hurt one of his one.

"How could I?" A tear ran down his cheek, followed by serials of new ones.

* * *

_A/N: Oh no! Another cliffhanger, what will happen next? Write and review, I really like when you do, what do you think of it, is there anything that can be changed? I've been thinking of maybe getting a beta-reader, so tell me if you're interested _


	7. When World Changes

_Gaupe: It's been a long time since I last updated, but here you have the seventh chapter of this fanfic. Next chapter will come in not too long time._

_Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters in this fanfiction, they belong to the creators of Naruto_

**When World Changes**

_Chapter 7_

For the first time in many days, I could see the sunrise, experiencing, really know for sure that a new day arrived, after being caught in eternal darkness; never knowing whether it was day or night. I urged for the bright, brilliant rays to caress my skin with their warmness, illuminate the hope, and imagine that the setting was different. I longed back to the days that was before I got into this living hell. It felt like it was a whole eternity since last time I saw Naruto and my largest problem was the heat.

Red light beamed through the window and sent a brilliant stripe of light at the floor. I could've been in Konoha. I could've competed in one of Naruto's silly Ramen competitions. I could be in my own bed and think of my current situation as an unthinkable scenario, something beyond what was supposed to be possible. But, I wasn't home, and there were no guaranties to make sure I ever would be. There were challenges enough as it was.

One thing was to tolerate Kisame and Itachi without flying of the handle or becoming a nervous wreck, especially with the presence of Kisame's sick sense of humour. One could never know if he was serious about them or just joking. A different thing was to get through the day, alive, when the intake of any kind of food was extremely limited and the treatment of my serious damages was rather poor.

I just waited for the body to recharge, and then maybe I could leave this place for good. The sun got higher on the sky and its rays would soon enough reach my body. Even though I craved for the sun's warmth, I gave no effort in reaching it. I still felt like even the tiniest move would be a waste of valuable power. So I stayed in the bed waiting patiently, it would get to me sooner or later anyways.

The light reflected in the dust particles in the air, ignited the wood on the walls and the floor, showing darker spots and creaks I never knew of. I don't think I've ever appreciated the sun as much as at this moment, but even the joy of light wouldn't make it easier to find me or free me. However, it kept me from losing the little tint of hope that was left in me, helping me survive each passing day.

The creaking sound of the wooden door of room, opening, caught my attention, forcibly throwing me back to reality. A figure that I'd come to find all too familiar the last days made me freeze, tense up, loose all the warmth gained from the sun. Sharingan eyes stared at me with their ever so unemotional look, the mouth still firm as a line. I moved away from the cold look, watching outside the window instead, attempting to keep the little joy I'd felt only moments ago from his cooling appearance. I wouldn't let go of it whatever the cost of it may be, save from death itself.

Thuds of his light steps made me rethink my choice of avoiding to watch him. What if he did something to me? What if he made a sudden move? Merely looking him in the eyes felt like being naked, stripped from all protection and cover. In other words, you could never feel safe with his depthless eyes scanning you, leaving you with a lost feeling of having him knowing every aspect of you, even the ones you wanted to hide, even though it may not be reality. It just felt like.

I dared turning toward him again, still avoiding his eyes. He wore no cloak that hid his forms, merely a black shirt and trousers. His feet were bare. Something inside me told me there was mischief brewing. Why was Itachi entering this room dressed like this, so casually, the way I expected someone to be clad only when being home? He walked across the small room, to a dark wooded closet that until now hadn't caught my attention. He opened it, seemingly ignoring my staring. The closetdoor threw a shadow in the sun and made it impossible to see what he was searching for. I heard him rummage for a while and utilized the chance to watch dare watching the back of his head.

The strands of his black hair tied in a loose ponytail on his back jumped up and down as he continued to search. Memories from the day when he took me out of the dungeon like place, carrying me on his back, recalled. When I'd felt the silky feeling of his hair.

I found myself lost in the memory before I realized that he was done searching and was staring at me, with something I suspected could be the tiniest hint of curiosity. My eyes focused on what he held in his hands, something of black fabric with red clouds, an Akatsuki cloak.

It was then reality hit me at full force; how long had I been lying in this bed? Why Itachi get into this particular room to get a cloak? Why was the last memory I had one of an embarrassing meal? I couldn't even remember being transported to this room or this bed, nor watch Itachi undress the cloak. There was only one logical reason, this room, this bed, belonged to none other than Uchiha Itachi. I'd been enjoying the sun from the same bed as Konoha's probably most hated man had been sleeping in.

I was overwhelmed by disgust for myself, how could I not have noticed? I should feel abhorred, detested. I should feel shame for betraying Sasuke this way. But I didn't. Not as strong as I whished for it to be. Sasuke would hate me if he saw me now. The Uchiha still stared at me, with a look that seemed to be even more penetrating than any other look he'd ever showed me. Had he read my features? Did he understand everything? He seemed a little tense, as if he was angry or pissed, but of what? He didn't blink and his grip of the cloak in his hand got firmer. What was he thinking? I didn't dare speak, even move, I wouldn't miss this moment.

Seconds later it was over, he seemed more relaxed and he turned his gaze away before moving against the door. I felt a strange kind of unsatisfied urge, there were so many unanswered questions floating in the tense atmosphere. It left me feel restless and nervous. I needed answers, no I _craved_ them. I hardly knew anything at all, I'd become a thing, an object that just was there.

I saw Itachi's hand reach for the doorknob, the cloak being balanced in one hand. Did he just get here to get the cloak or was there something more? The hand grabbed the knob, starting to pull it down. Why did he look so tense? The locking mechanism clicked. What should I do now? The door creaked, the gap between door and doorframe widening. Why was I here at all? I saw Itachi place one foot at the outside of the room. I needed answers _now_.

"Wait" I was desperate to know, but the voice came out in a weak, raspy whisper, even though I really tried to shout and sound determined.

Itachi stopped in dead in his tracks before shooting an annoyed glare at me. I instantly regretted demanding him to stay; he was defiantly _not_ a man to be controlled by someone like me. The last thing I ever needed was more injuries; I had more than enough with those I already had. And I still couldn't focus chakra into my hands as they were still covered in bandages from the damage of unknown extent. He didn't seem to make any moves that indicated an attack that without question would place me back where he meant I belonged. So I dared ask my first question.

"How long did I sleep?" I asked in a shaky voice, there were reasons to be afraid. No one I'd ever know of had ever spent this much time with the Akatsuki without being killed.

"You slept for two whole days, kunoichi" Itachi had turned toward me and stared me deeply into the eyes. His eyebrows were slightly furrowed, but save from that there was nothing to take notice of that indicated clear emotion. "We could easily have killed you in your sleep, if we had the intention to"

Was that meant as a threat or some strange kind of device? His dark voice made shrill run through my spine. He was indeed threatening not to forget flawless. He was a person to admire or fear, with no room for something in the between. Either he was you allied or he was your enemy.

"That's… reassuring… to hear-" My tone held a hint of bitterness, I wouldn't let him get away with snide remarks or threats with the intention to lower me further. "-but… as I see it, you still could've killed me a long time ago, which means your threat is irrelevant…"

Itachi dropped the cloak and was suddenly, the next moment; he was mere inches away from my face. His red Sharingan was boring holes into me and he was without doubt grave serious about it. His mouth was half open, his breath hit my face and I could even feel the warmth of it.

"How can you be so sure?" I didn't know if someone like Itachi ever had moments were he lost control of himself and suddenly became more talkative and vivid. But if he really did, this had to be one of them.

"I could kill you now if I wanted to" He made a statement out of touching my neck in feather light touch, before grabbing my throat more harshly, too light to choke me, but hard enough to make me pass out any moment. He released the grip and gave me some time to breath just in time and left me touching my throat with my left hand for a while, before he approached again.

"But as long as we need you alive, I can't do it; however that doesn't keep me from making you suffer or being injured" Itachi more like hissed at me dangerously. My pulse increased and my heart beat madly as he seemed to gain a small look of satisfactory. He truly was frightening and he truly knew how to force people to the breaking point, without having them break, at the very same time as he scares the shit out of them.

The memory of his kiss was recalled and I truly felt ashamed, it should've been Sasuke. That was how it was supposed to be. I was not to be kissed by a criminal. The impact of an action that in itself was supposed to be quite innocent had grown into something big and sinful, something strictly forbidden. It just got worse when I thought of the feeling; it had felt different, scaring, but not disgusting. I tried to convince myself that I truly detested it, banished it, but I was always reminded by myself that it wasn't the truth.

I felt the tears threaten to make their appearance, though I was in the presence of an enemy that was Uchiha Itachi after all. He wasn't supposed to watch me in my weaker moments. That would be like sinking even deeper. I didn't find anything to say; searching franticly for the right thing to say, something to throw into his face, something that was so stunning it would set any real human back.

"I think you are weak, weaker than any Uchiha" I said as firm as I could, trying to act as indifferent as I could. If I knew the Uchiha right, no Uchiha would like to be commented as weak or treated disrespectfully as they where a family of pride and honour. Itachi snorted and the little calmness and satisfaction he'd gotten seemed to be wiped away. It defiantly wasn't safe, but I still continued my rude flow of words. I wouldn't let him say the last words.

"You really love to ruin other people's life, especially your younger brother's life. Did you enjoy killing your parents? Was it not enough for you? You had to wipe them all away, even your best friend and shatter Sauske into a wreck of hatred? "

I was careful to sound really mocking, despite my hoarse voice and it seemingly had its effect. Itachi's eyes narrowed into angry-looking slits. From the look he gave me, I guessed no one had ever dared treat him that disrespectfully, and survived. But I was not to take my words back; I was tiered of being treated as if I didn't exist. Itachi continued staring at me and his eyebrows seemed to furrow more than they already were. It didn't sound good.

"How dare you?" Itachi's voice was threateningly low. And he got even closer as if to show who was in charge. His palm approached her throat again. He placed it there, every finger was spread out, ready to strangle. "Have you forgotten all about me breaking your leg, Kisame ruining your arms, the events of the dungeon?"

It was so unlike Itachi to talk in such a manner, he was for once a little emotional, but not in a good way. I felt a lump in my throat, and swallowed hard. Why did I always have to mess everything up? Damn, it was defiantly not a good thing. All I wanted to do was getting back home. Itachi's pressed the palm a little harder against my skin, as if he was not clear enough already.

"You are a hostage and shall act as one; you are _not_ to throw rude remarks" Itachi hissed sinisterly. I felt him shift the position of his palm on my neck, the fingers ghosting, creating menacing tickles. I was beginning to break into a cold sweat. Feeling like peeing on myself, it was so nervous. Couldn't he just get over with it? I felt the endless torture of his hand, though I didn't have the energy to pull it away. I hadn't tasted food or water in two whole days.

I placed my hands around his wrist regardless of it, attempting to get his arm away. But he wouldn't let me, so there I was, fighting a long lost battle. I began to panic. He was too close.

"Release me" I coughed through the squeezed windpipe.

"What about me frighten you the most?" Itachi questioned in the same dangerous way. Some strands of his black hair brushing against my face. I felt a tear run down my cheek, one tear that betrayed my desire to hide my emotions. He would see how weak he'd made me. He would see the weaknesses. He would see straight through me.

"You fear physical contact; even a mere touch is like torture to you when uttered by someone you describe to be as weak as _me_" He murmured with a hint of sarcasm, to say he was weak perhaps wasn't the right thing to say. He placed the index finger of the hand he didn't try to choke me with on my tearstained cheek.

I attempted to escape its touch with all the power I could master, as if its contact would burn and scar me permanently. But the hand on my throat kept me from moving away and when I tried he tightened his grip further, so I ended up having his finger pressed against my skin. I trembled and bit down on my lip hard, my eyelids squeezed shut. The worst with this touch was to be reminded of how many people the owner had killed with his bare hands. He'd wiped out the entire clan, his own family, destroyed so many lives.

"Don't touch me!" I yelled in a voice that sounded more like rasping. Feeling the energy I'd once gotten fade away, leaving me once again weak, I stopped struggling. There was nothing more to take of. I was simply too tiered, however I still continued the fight involving words and of who was going to say the last phrase.

And when it came to my lacking power, he noticed, but he did no move to release me or lighten the grip, the hand remained in the same position. Probably he did it to show me that he wouldn't let me get it the way I wanted it to be. As if it wasn't already demonstrated more than well enough already. But like before, I would never learn, no matter how many times he would try to mock me with his strength or scare me nearly to death with his harshness.

Of course it was easy to forget what my real purposes were, when all of my senses got utterly dominated by him; his smell, the frightening touch, his eyes, his warmth and to have his whole being blocking the sight of anything else my eyes desired to see. It made me helpless and when the moment came and I was forced over the limit of what I could handle, it lead me to the need to cut everything of, but recently that ability hadn't worked very well. I demanded him to let go, but he didn't listen, he never listen. So the only way it would really have an effect was by welcoming unconsciousness and say goodbye to reality.

But today I wouldn't sleep, I wouldn't run away, because, sooner or later I knew there would be no way out but to face him. I needed to stay focused, I'd already thrown away two valuable days on nothing else than sleeping. Even though those days may be exactly what I needed. Some time to rest and attempt to get stronger. But Itachi shattered it all with a rage I'd never thought he could ever possess.

The hand still pressed hard against my throat, but he couldn't kill me, he wasn't allowed to, at the moment. In other words this was not the worst thing I could experience and it was far from as bad as the dungeon seeing it that way. The thought made me feel a little more at ease, light-headed, maybe if I calmed down breathing wouldn't be so hard and if I waited long enough it would end. I had to control my fear, I had to face him.

I struggled to convince myself into relaxing; the silence was absolute for minutes, the air more strained, but when he finally dared meet his eyes again most of the fear was gone. It was a necessity I needed to fulfil both to end the psychical torture and to fight against my own panic. I allowed myself to get absorbed by those red eyes. As I then noticed the strange bright tone they held, cloudy, however it was hardly noticeable. I wondered what it could be, but it was impossible to know it for sure without further examination. It looked like an eye decease I'd never seen before. But certainly it had something peculiar with the Uchiha family to do.

I could see the tiny veins in the white of his eyes, they appeared stressed, over-used. The eyes then darkened and became black, just like Sasuke's eyes. They seemed less strained, but his gaze now looked distant, as if he wasn't present at all. The finger on my cheek then swept up to my temple, before it touched my artery, feeling my pulse. His brows was no longer tensed in anger, they were more like raised in surprise. But of what? He removed the hand on my throat to head for the door, but he always leaned against the door with his side. Something he didn't expect had happened and it had made him want to retreat almost immediately.

I could see him support himself against the doorframe. By studying the way he breathed he had to be worried. Something about him defiantly wasn't right. To see him so frightened was very unlike him, it made him more human. The door opened and he stumbled out of the door. I sat up hesitantly and his eyes instantly moved to stare emptily at me, there was blood around one of his eyes, before he turned away and moved down the hallway.

The sound that came next made me panic, a loud thud and heavy coughing. It had to be him. I managed to stumble out of the wooden bed, defying my weakened state and what the Akatsuki eventually would do, limping on the one good leg. I paused at the doorstep and stared out into the hallway. On the floor I could see Itachi dropped to his knees, almost kneeling, coughing heavily.

Out of curiousity I dared move closer to see what was happening, but when I approached he turned his head against me, staring at me with his black eyes that in seconds turned into the normal Sharingan again. There was blood in the corner of his mouth and in his hand. He looked angered, irritated by me seeing him this weak.

His glance, just like the eyes of a harmed lion, told me there was no room for escaping or moving closer. But as an act of defiance I walked against him regardless his unsaid threat. A weakened Itachi was a good Itachi. I jumped closer, watching him as he continued coughing loudly with his hand still covering the mouth. This was too good to be truth, Itachi being ill. His eyes knitted together in pain as a new series of coughing and hawing began. I moved pass him and noticed a hand grabbing for my foot. All I did was stumbling away; it was surprisingly easy to escape him.

"If… you… take… another… step… I'll call Kisame!" He menaced me between coughs with his Sharingan eyes boring into me. The courage I'd moments ago drained when he mentioned Kisame. The last thing I wanted was to see him again, I didn't need more damages.

So there I was standing, with the opportunity to escape, but when thinking twice new questions emerged. How could I know where I was? What if I got lost outside and even died there? For all I knew it could take days to get back and my condition didn't justify that I was in shape to run for days. There was nothing to be happy for, my chances of survival were actually larger here than any other places at the moment.

I turned around to stare at him again, he was a cruel person and he deserved the pain and suffers. He deserved it all. For all he'd done to me and Sasuke. However it was never easy to see a human being tortured and just letting it happen would make me just as bad as him. No human, no matter how mad they were deserved anything better than torture.

I then walked against him, stopping in my tracks ten feet away from him before daring taking a few more steps to close the space in between. I stared at him without blinking. Kneeling down before him I ventured touching the hand he'd placed on the floor. His eyes were threatening, but I continued to touch it, feeling his pulse which was faster than what it normally should be. In addition his temperature was alarmingly high, he wasn't healthy.

Judging his condition, the paleness, the cloudy eyes; the illness had to be going on for a longer time, but it seemed to be worse than ever now. Maybe he was on his last legs? At least he wasn't as strong as he was feared or expected to be anymore, he was rather weak. I struggled to let his chakra flow into my destroyed chakra-channels, analysing it. I could barely feel a weak tint of deep painfulness. To handle such a sickness and still do the damage he'd already done, he had to be taking some kind of medicine or be visiting a medic-nin frequently, which was very unlike him.

"Why don't you make Kisame bring you your _medicine_?" I asked him in a venomous manner. His eyes looked madder than ever, there was no way around it, I'd hit a weak spot. This was vulnerable information he seemingly didn't want to let _anyone_ know of. Even Kisame didn't know, he was alone about knowing. He hadn't let anyone close enough to read the signs and guess right. He hadn't expected me to analyse him so well, I, the apprentice of the great Tsunade. He didn't know. But he was in no position to stop me. He didn't know I could read the vague signals that actually passed the broken nerves in my hands.

"Don't say that!" Itachi hissed desperately as if being afraid to let anyone hear. The weak Itachi, the vulnerable Itachi. I had an opportunity I couldn't waste. I had to figure this out carefully. Since he hadn't stopped me himself when I thought of escaping he wouldn't be able to find the medicine himself unless he carried it with him. However since he hadn't eaten the medicine yet he didn't carry it on him. So it had to be somewhere else. I grinned mentally.

"Let's strike an agreement" I said firmly as I carefully read his reactions. His eyes became slits, it was clearly not an idea he liked. I could guess someone like him didn't like to depend on others power. When he said nothing I supposed he would listen to me.

"I'll bring you your medicine and won't tell Kisame of your illness, if you promise to not hunt Naruto and release me" Itachi watched me carefully, considering my words.

"I'm listening, but I don't want you to tell this to _anyone_, not Naruto, not Tsunade. You're not even going to let them find out in other ways as long as I live" I listened to him carefully, looking for any loopholes that he tried to make or places where I possibly make ones for myself.

"And when it comes to the medicine… I want you to bring it to me instantly, but I also want you to do your best to get rid of it." He coughed in his cold voice, at least there may was a light in the end of the tunnel of this captivity. But then the words I feared came. "You are not to leave this place"

"…And what about Naruto?" I barked at him displeased. Itachi sent me a small, but cruel smirk before he collapsed into another coughing fit.

He stared at me again as he dried away more blood with the fabric of his cloak. "If I am to stop hunting Kyuubi, you are to stay until I am cured from this decease, but that doesn't mean Kisame will stop chasing him…"

It would be like betraying Konoha, but as a ninja of honour I wouldn't let anyone suffer something they don't deserve and if it could protect Naruto. It was a high price to pay, but Naruto was not to die from Itachi's wrath.

"I am willing to fulfil your wants if you promise to fulfil my wants and make sure I don't suffer the way I have until now, I'm not to starve, and I'm not going to be tortured for any reasons…" I stared at him defiantly as I saw him prepare himself for another series of coughs. He stared at me for a while before covering his mouth again.

"If you are to break the promise I'll hunt _you _and those close to you down, the agreement then no longer matters. You'll be my first priority to kill for you knowledge" I saw him tremble from the building up coughing fit; he was losing a lot of blood.

"Likewise for you if you break your part" I grumbled at him angrily as I watched him break down in coughs once again. "Then let's strike the bargain"

I reached out my hand for his. "I want your word"

"I'll keep my promise" Itachi looked up at me again from his pained state to grab my extensive hand, I felt a little nervous as he grabbed my hand painfully hard and murmured in his cold voice. "Now I want your word"

I looked at him nervously before saying the words that would change everything. "I promise to keep my part of the bargain…"

My eyes met Itachi's red Sharingan as I let the whole situation sink in. It would take some time to get used to the thought of healing an enemy classified as one of the worst enemies of Konoha.

"Now, bring me the medicine. It's placed in the closet under the bottom…" Itachi whispered hoarsely in a hardly audible voice. He appeared a little more at ease, but still was quite unhappy of the thought of having an enemy knowing vulnerable information.

I rose to my feet and limped out back to the room I was in moments ago. Knowing I was obligated to heal him, that I wasn't going to technically leave his side, knowing I had committed a crime, I hadn't and wasn't bound to it moments ago. My world changed in seconds, I was walking behind the back of Konoha, of everyone I knew. What if Naruto knew? How would he then think of me, my family? But there was no turning back, so I walked to the closet opened the doors. I removed, was in contact with, clothes my enemy used, opened the bottom of the closet to find a strange package of brown paper holding a small pot of pills. I grabbed it, observing the oval pills. I then closed the wooden closet and stumbled my way back to the hallway. Itachi was still kneeling pathetically at the floor as I reached out my hand to hand him the small container.

"I suggest you double your advised dose and stay in bed until the symptoms weaken" I said in my businesslike, impassive doctor voice.

TO BE CONTINUED

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